Mobile Learning as a Competitive Resource in Higher Education within the United Arab Emirates
[Thesis]
Samer Aoudi
Brizek, Michael
Northcentral University
2015
169
Committee members: Avena, Nicole; Bouvin, David
Place of publication: United States, Ann Arbor; ISBN=978-1-339-21437-5
Ph.D.
Business and Technology Management
Northcentral University
2015
Adopting educational innovations as competitive resources in higher education is an important decision for academic institutions operating in a market characterized by increasing competition. This study addresses the problem stemming from the failure of some HEIs to utilize Mobile Learning (ML) as a resource toward sustainable Competitive Advantage (CA). The purpose of this quantitative study was to investigate the concerns of faculty of HEIs in the UAE toward ML, as an indicator of the effectiveness of the implementation process, and as it relates to the competitiveness of the HEI. In order to carry out this study, two surveys were administered: a teachers' survey and an administrators' survey. Data were collected from the teachers about their concerns regarding ML, based on the Stages of Concerns Questionnaire (SoCQ), a construct of the Concerns Based Adoption Model (CBAM). Administrators were asked about their perceptions of the CA and performance of their institutions. The one-way ANOVA that was performed on the mean responses from the teachers concerns, indicated the presence of a statistically significant relationship between teachers' SoC towards ML as it relates to both the CA and the performance of their institutions. In addition, the findings of this study indicated that while higher education teachers in the UAE generally had awareness of and interest in ML, large numbers did not seem to be engaged in higher SoC regarding ML. The implications of the findings highlighted a need for intervention to improve the implementation of ML in HEI. Areas for future research included a qualitative study designed to better understand how ML is being used as an educational innovation with the ultimate goal of utilizing it as a competitive resource.
Business administration; Information Technology; Educational technology
Social sciences;Applied sciences;Education;Concerns based adoption model;Mobile learning;Rbv;Stages of concerns questionnaire;United arab emirates