Computer Usage in Canadian University Students and the Internet - Research Paper Example

?Running head: Canadian and the internet Increasing Exposure: Computer Usage in Canadian and the Internet Introduction Statement of the Research Question How can the Canadian university students be made more aware of the perils of the internet and the perils that they may face with their increasing dependence on computers? The research question has been postulated because of the increasing usage of computer of Canadians wherein about 53% of the citizens use the computer and within this percentile, 65% uses the internet (Statistics Canada, 2001). Looking at this statistics alone, it is clear that even at the turn of the century, there has been wide spread usage of computer in the country and that there has been a substantial exposure of these users from the internet. Indeed, the computer has greatly revolutionized the way things are done in both the schools and the office. Moreover, the internet has opened up greater access to more information. Through these marvels of technology, the students are able to do their various research needs faster and are also able to make their various reports and other school work easier and better. As such, there has been faster ways of learning and instructing necessary for the advancement of basically all societies in the world. Those that have greater access have greatly expanded their knowledge base and improved their research capabilities. However, Kraut et al (1998) have long warned of the risks that come with the usage of the internet. Indeed, among its fundamental flaws is the tendency for those caught up in the technology to veer away from traditional ties and increase the gap of societies. Indeed, it is like an irony wherein such a massive improvement has effectively brought people from all over the world closer together and has likewise levelled the boundaries between countries. however, the tendency to converse and to interact online have basically eroded the very important foundation that can only be built through personal communications. It is then important to note that there has been an increasing trend of internet usage in Canada. The greatest acceleration was found between those aged 15 to 19 wherein about 90% of this age group uses the internet (Dryburgh, 2001). Indeed the research opportunities in the internet is so immense that this has been a very important tool for many students in Canada and even the whole world. However, the internet does not only provide information necessary for school work. The internet is also a rich source of leisure and entertainment. The impact of the internet was so immense that it has even eroded the hold watching television has once had upon Canadians as their prime activity for leisure. It appears that over the years, the internet and computer usage has taken a significant amount of time Canadians previously spent on watching television. Theoretical Implications Educators’ Dilemma Looking at the massive involvement by the Canadian youth toward the computers, it is important to note that this must be able to be combined with the teaching capabilities of the teachers. Indeed, the computers and the internet have vastly improved the research capabilities of the students from all over the world. Moreover, the integration of these new learning tools are generally perceived as improvements that ought to assist educators. Hence, the vast opportunities that they offer ought to be taken advantage of by the teachers. However, there has been some studies that have shown a considerable difficulty in the integration process of these technological innovations due to the attitude of educators to this new form of learning (Chou & Wang, 1999). It is therefore important to ensure that teachers are properly motivated to utilize these innovations that are increasingly taking hold of the youth. The innovations presented by the internet and by computers have already been a trend that is irreversible which necessitates educators to embrace such instruments in order to ensure that they are able to match the needs of the present learning environment. Hence, this calls for a proper recognition of the differences between the training of these educators to help them adapt to these changes (Chou & Wang, 1999; Liu & Reed, 1994). A World Within The role of these educators in the lives of the students is very important and their pressing influences must be highlighted especially with the aforementioned increase in computer and internet utilization by Canadians, most notably the youth. As such, it is of utmost concern for these educators to teach the students of the responsibility in the usage of these devices and technological conveniences. Already, the impact of computers and the internet has altered the leisure activities of Canadians preferring instead to use computers rather than the television for entertainment (Statistics Canada, 2001). As such, these students can become disenchanted with the marvels of the cyber world that they tend to get hooked so much at the expense of the personal ties they may have with their peers (Kraut, et al, 1998). The cyber world has increasingly been turning into a location for most of the youth to converge and as in the real world; there are areas of concern confined within the screens of the computer. Hence, the increasing dependency of students to computers greatly magnifies the possible exposure of the youths to horrific places in the internet. Indeed, surveys found about a quarter to almost a half of men access pornographic materials in the internet. More importantly, there have been an alarming 44% of men that a Canadian survey found to have accessed the internet and viewed pornographic materials before they were even 16 years of age (info provided by simpletoremember.com, 2011). In-depth Description This paper will not postulate hypothesis questions as the research is meant to have a clearer understanding of the possible perils of the internet and its relation to the dependence of university students on computers. The research will utilize a qualitative approach synthesizing the various literature related to the postulated research problem in order to have a clearer understanding of the university students in Canada and their dependence on computers which in turn can make them more fragile to the perils of the internet. Indeed, it has been shown that the emergence of the internet was like the emergence of a new locale albeit like real world places have good and bad spots of their own. Unfortunately, unlike the various cities and municipalities, there is no governing body within the internet. Indeed, the internet is brimming with dangers, both open and hidden which points out a very pressing need to manage this emerging technological innovation. As such, the paper will dwell on the dangers on the internet such as the proliferation of pornography, the cases of abduction that has been initiated by emails and chat messages and the yawning gap between families that has been attributed to the computer and the internet (Kraut, et al, 1998). As such, it is important to remember that educators have the utmost responsibility of helping mould students to be responsible “netizens” in order to ensure that the benefits of the computer and the internet are not outweighed by its potentially destructive tendencies. Thus, it is important to reconcile educator’s capabilities and methods with the expansion of computer usage and internet accessibility (Chou & Wang, 1999; Liu & Reed, 1994). Review of Related Literature The environment of today has been greatly influenced by both globalization and technological innovations. Basically, these developments are generally meant to improve the quality of life in the planet. The ease provided by the lower barriers to trade has been an important game changer for companies nowadays. As such, there has been an increasing shift from the curriculum of various learning institutions. Unfortunately, there have been some problems with aligning the capabilities and the methods of various educators. As such Liu & Reed (1994) has tried to put forward some ways of improving and recalibrating trainings for these educators with the opportunities that abounds the internet. Looking at the data from Statistics Canada (2001), there has been a considerable increase in the utilization of computers by Canadians whereby a great portion of these computer users access the internet. Consequently, as mentioned, a greater portion of those that access the internet ranges from 15 to 19 years of age. Basically, these are university level students which only underline the increased exposure of these students to risks in the internet. This is further highlighted by the evident shift in leisure preferences from the television to the computers. However, as mentioned, the internet is teeming with dangerous materials that tend to corrupt the minds of these students. There have been a large number of men that has accessed pornographic materials even before reaching 16 years of age (info provided by simpletoremember.com, 2011). Indeed, the family also plays in crucially in protecting the youth from the perils of the internet. Hence, it is no surprise that among the tell-tale signs of risks in the internet involves the weak or weakening ties within the family itself. Indeed, for younger children and students, care should begin at home. Distant relationship with parents tends to put children at risk when they foray into the dangers of the internet. It is basically a whole new world out there. The problem is that even at the confines and perceived safety of their own home, children can be exposed to the potential moral hazards and other threats in the internet. For university students however, where there is a tendency to have more distance, educators are then left with the task of helping these adolescents and young adults to be more discerning of the world that they view using their computers. This is very important especially since it has been found out that those that are more prone to venture into the dangerous alleys of the internet are those that are running low on self esteem. As such, these students tend to be more vulnerable to the perils of the cyberspace (Davis, Griffith & Wang, 2001). However, with the increasing use of computers and the increasing utilization of the internet, the increasing risk is very imminent and it is important for educators to be more discerning with their charges so that those that tend to go astray can be substantially reduced. In line with this, the computer and the internet is an avenue of anonymity whereby people can say what they want that they cannot do offline. As such, it is very important to bridge the gap between teachers and parents with the students so that they will not go astray into the internet looking for acceptance and some breathing room to voice out their thoughts. Consequently, those that find it hard to succeed in socializing in the real world tend to focus their attention and to seek this attention in the cyberspace (Beard, Shaw and Gant, 2002). However, it is also important to note that learning can go both ways whereby since many youths are exposed to the internet then perhaps they can be the ones to teach their elders regarding the internet (Dickinson & Sciadas, 1999). Then again, the degree of openness is the crucial part for this to succeed. Hence, educators will need to try to recalibrate their approach to understand their students as well as the new frontier that has been transforming almost every aspect of civilization nowadays. Indeed, the computer and the internet has been a very important tool to advance human progress and it has immense implications also for education. Moreover, teachers would be better off to understand that there are certain inclinations toward learning aided by the computer. Usually, those students that are field dependent are more attuned to this type of learning (Abouserie and Moss, 1992). Usually, those that are field dependent rely on the surroundings that they perceive. They also have a hard time with ambiguity, relating new from old information and know how, extracting data from their long-term memory as well as on the processing of cues that are non-salient. On the other hand, there are those that are not field dependent who are more able to make use of information from their long-term memory, are easily able to extract various data as well as to structure information and bridge old and new knowledge (Daniels, 1996). Indeed, Miah (2000) has postulated on the importance and the contribution of the internet and cyberspace to enhance the lives of its users. True, the internet has enabled massive improvements and has basically brought people across the world closer together. But, it can also take away time that should have been spent personally together. Hence, there is the debate over online learning and the personal touch that teachers use to influence their students to learn. As such there are differences in the learning levels and the achievement of students from the way they are able to process information (Cakan, 2000). Basically, it has been found that there are really no significant differences in the attitude of students when it comes to learning through the internet as well as their field dependencies (Alomyan & Au, 2004). As such, educators ought to look at their approach to students and determine how they can make the internet more of a source of strength rather than as a source of weakness for their students. Looking at the preceding data, it is clear that the internet and the computer usage have been increasing their prominence within almost every aspects of society. This, of course, includes Canadian university students. However, it is also clear that there are disadvantages that come along with the use of the internet. Indeed, it has been shown that despite the research capabilities presented by the internet, there are also areas of concern such as pornography and other avenues that may risk these students. It has also been determined that those that are unable to react and socialize in the real world tend to make the cyberspace their home. Clearly, in the university, the teachers play a key role in guiding their students. Hence, it is then important to determine the readiness of educators to utilize this field for their instructional needs to their students. As such, it is important to ensure the readiness of the educators to factor in the developments brought about by technological innovations. It is encouraging to note that in the training of educators, it has been found out that most educators, regardless of their gender or the level that they teach prefer the use of computers. Moreover, the attitude of students towards learning through the computers is shown to be free of their capabilities to their grasp information (Altun, 2003). It is therefore an advantage to the students since the internet offers a myriad of information from where they can learn from. As such, it is then important to ensure that the increasing use of the computer and the internet does not result in the increasing risk of students going astray into illicit sites and lewd realms that is prevalent in the cyberspace. Hence, this research should focus on trying to determine how much of the student population is at risk. There have been signs that have been enumerated to determine those that are at most risk such as those with loose connections from their families as well as those that view themselves as socially unfit (info provided by simpletoremember.com, 2011). After determining these strata, the teachers in the university must them evaluate their programs as to how they can reach out to these students. It is also important to know whether the learning programs that are assisted by computers not only teach the students about the respective subjects on the courses that they are taking but must likewise provide guidance on how to be responsible netizens in order to ensure that the learning opportunities outweigh, if not eliminate altogether the threats. Finally, it must be found out whether there is adequate security in the school to block and ward off possible threatening materials that the students can come across to. Hence, the level of protection must be determined. As mentioned, the internet has become just like any place in the world but unfortunately, unlike cities, this has no government (info provided by simpletoremember.com, 2011). It is therefore up to the university and its faculty to determine the possible methods from which to protect their students from the perils of the World Wide Web. Description of Methods and Data Gathering Techniques A purely quantitative research approach shall be used to gather data on the possible dependence of Canadian students on computers. The research design shall be descriptive-correlational, attempting to determine which factors influence computer dependence. A survey instrument shall be specifically designed for this purpose. The latter shall be validated, ascertaining both its reliability and validity. A pilot test shall be conducted to ensure that all of the items of the instrument are easily comprehensible for prospective respondents. Moreover, consent form shall be handed over to each respondent prior to the survey administration proper, in accordance with ethical protocol (Black, 2003). They shall be asked to affix their signature as proof that they are participating in the research out of their own volition. Non-probability sampling shall be used in selecting the respondents, particularly purposive sampling. This type of sampling requires that a respondent possess certain characteristics prescribed by the researcher before he may be included onto the sample proper (Punch, 2003). In the case of the present study, the inclusion criteria that shall be used are as follows: 1) should be a student of a university based in Canada; 2) at least 18 years of age at the time of survey conduct; 3) uses computers with ample frequency (i.e. at least16 hours a week). The statistics of the research shall be generated through the use of the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 17.0. Descriptive statistics shall be computed, such as the mean, standard deviations, frequencies, and percentages. In addition, multiple regression shall be carried out to determine which factors significantly predict computer use and dependent among Canadian students. The results of the statistical analysis shall be cross-compared with the outcomes of related studies to derive meaningful conclusions and recommendations. References Abouserie, R., & Moss, D. (1992). Cognitive style, gender, attitude toward computer assisted learning. Educational Studies, 18 (2), 151-161. Alomyan, H., & Au, W. 2004. Exploration of instructional strategies and individual difference within the context of web-based learning. International Education Journal, 4 (4), 86-91. Altun, A. 2003. The relationship between teacher trainees’ attitudes toward computers and their cognitive styles. Turkish Online Journal of Educational Technology, 2 (1). Retrieved on October 21, 2005 from http://www.tojet.sakarya.edu.tr/archive/v1i2/arif3.htm. Beard, K., Shaw, L.H., and Gant L.M. (2002). In defense of the internet: the relationship between internet communication and depression, loneliness, self-esteem, and perceived social support. Cyberpsychology and Behavior, 5(2), 169-173. Black, T. 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