Abstract
The usage of information technology (IT) has changed the process of learning and teaching in the last few years significantly. This trend has been boosted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Students not having the needed IT equipment, IT skills or online connections are facing issues in this process: A digital divide in education. This research aims to explore this digital divide for high school students in Cambodia and to highlight ways to bridge the gap. Therefore, it generated primary data using a case study approach. Surveys exploring different perspectives of the research area (IT availability, IT proficiency levels, online connection quality, learning efficacy, and well-being during online learning phases) are created and performed online or onsite with Cambodian high school students in different regions. The findings show, that Cambodia is facing a major digital divide in education. A majority of high school students have no access to computers, which are crucial for an effective online learning process. Smartphones are widely available but cannot offer the same quality within an online learning process. This situation is worse at government schools compared to private schools and more severe in rural areas compared to the municipality. Other findings: IT skills are in the mid-range. Online quality is varying, and results are indifferent. Many students report feeling unwell during phases of online learning.
Author Information
Bob Nanthakorn, Thammasat Business School, Thailand
Meirambek Zhaparov, Paragon International University, Cambodia
Peter Ractham, Thammasat Business School, Thailand
Paper Information
Conference: ECE2023
Stream: Education
This paper is part of the ECE2023 Conference Proceedings (View)
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To cite this article:
Nanthakorn B., Zhaparov M., & Ractham P. (2023) Exploring and Bridging the Increasing Digital Divide for Cambodian Educational System ISSN: 2188-1162 The European Conference on Education 2023: Official Conference Proceedings https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2188-1162.2023.15
To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.22492/issn.2188-1162.2023.15
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