Undergraduate paramedic students' attitudes to e-learning: findings from five university programs

Computers and computer-assisted instruction are being used with increasing frequencyin the area of undergraduate paramedic education. Paramedic students'attitudes towards the use of e-learning technology and computer-assisted instructionhave received limited attention in the empirical literature to date. Theobjective of this study was to determine paramedic students' attitudes towardse-learning. A cross-sectional methodology was used in the form of a paperbasedsurvey to elicit students' attitudes to e-learning using three standardisedscales. Convenience sampling was used to sample a cross-section of paramedicstudents at five universities during semester 1 of 2009. The scales used were:the Computer Attitude Survey (CAS), the Online Learning Environment Survey(OLES), and the Attitude Toward CAI Semantic Differential Scale(ATCAISDS). There were 339 students who participated. Approximately onehalf(57.7%) were female and most (76.0%) were under 24 years of age. Moderateresults were noted for the CAS general and education subscales. The CASresults were broadly corroborated by the OLES, although a statistically significantdifference between participants preferred and actual results on the OLESComputer Usage subscale identified that participants would prefer to use computersless than they actually do. Similarly, the ATCAISDS found participantswere largely ambivalent towards computers. As paramedic degree programscontinue to emerge and develop, careful consideration should be given to theusability and utility of various e-learning approaches.