The role of students’ digital literacy in the acceptance of the canvas learning management system in a mandatory use setting. A study of Sweden’s higher education

Abstract

This study investigated the role of students’ digital literacy in their acceptance of the Canvas learning management system in the mandatory use environment of Swedish higher education through the lens of Ng’s Digital Literacy Model and Davis’s Technology Acceptance Model (modified by Symbolic Adoption). The study employed a quantitative research approach, using a combination of convenience and snowball sampling to distribute an online survey to on-campus students from various academic programs. In total, 151 students responded to the questionnaire. To address the research questions, statistical analyses were conducted, including linear correlation, multiple regression, and independent sample t-tests. The findings revealed that the research instrument lacked validity for measuring Symbolic Adoption and the Social-Emotional dimension of the digital literacy model, which restricted the study’s capacity to investigate the potential relationships between the students’ digital literacy and their Canvas acceptance in a mandatory use setting. However, very weak correlations were found between the Cognitive dimension of digital literacy and students’ perceived usefulness and perceived ease of use toward Canvas LMS. Also, several statistically significant differences were identified between engineering and social sciences students in terms of their technical skills and cognitive efficiency in using digital tools and searching online information. Conversely, no significant differences emerged between the two groups regarding their perception of Canvas’s ease of use or perceived usefulness.