The Spring 2001 Surveys

This section of the site presents the data for the 2001 surveys in a comparative format. Each question is presented in tables compare Silverstone, Compton, Johnston, and Harrison.

• Section 1 Tables: Student Background
• Section 2 Tables: Access to Computers
• Section 3 Tables: Computer Skills
• Section 4 Tables: Computers and Your Educational Work
• Section 5 Tables: Computers and Your Educational Experiences

Section 1 Tables

Student Background

Section one questions cover a variety of factors that may be relevant to students' experiences with technology. There are questions on personal characteristics, such as gender, age, residence, language, ethnicity, student loans, debt, and parents' education. Aspects of the general educational status of the student are also asked for, including the number of years at the educational institution, and the stage and type of program. Finally this section asks questions on general educational orientation, including: learning priorities, learning style and time use.

• Gender of Respondents
• Age of Respondents
• Marital Status of Respondents
• Respondent's Place of Residence
• Ethnic Background of Respondent
  • English Ethnicity
  • French Ethnicity
  • Aboriginal Ethnicity
  • Caribbean Ethnicity
  • Chinese Ethnicity
  • Greek Ethnicity
  • Italian Ethnicity
  • Jewish Ethnicity
  • Portuguese Ethnicity
  • Vietnamese Ethnicity
  • Spanish Ethnicity
  • Other Ethnicity
• Childhood Language of Respondent
  • English Language Background
  • French Language Background
  • Italian Language Background
  • Greek Language Background
  • Portuguese Language Background
  • Spanish Language Background
  • Slavic Language Background
  • Chinese Language Background
  • Vietnamese Language Background
  • Arabic Language Background
  • Hebrew Language Background
  • Armenian Language Background
  • Other Language Background
• Years at Institution
• Program Year Level
• Degree Program of Respondent
• Cumulative GPA
• Government Student Loan
• Total Estimated Education Related Debt at Program Completion
• The Highest Level of Education Completed by Respondent's Mother (or Guardian)
• The Highest Level of Education Completed by Respondent's Father (or Guardian)
• University Life Priorities
• Education Priorities: Employment Skills and Qualifications
• Education Priorities: Qualifications More Important
• Education Priorities: Educational Experience More Important Than Qualifications
• Education Priorities: Attendance Without Economic Payoff
• Education Priorities: Student Social Life
• Education Priorities: Responsibility and Activism
• Education Priorities: Non-Academic Intellectual Life
• Education Priorities: Academic Intellectual Life
• Weekly Time Spent On Activities
  • Weekly Time Spent Attending Class
  • Weekly Time Spent on Studying or Assignments
  • Weekly Time Spent on Varsity Sports
  • Weekly Time Spent on Intramural Sports
  • Weekly Time Spent on Exercising or Non-Team Recreational Sports
  • Weekly Time Spent on Private Reading and Intellectual Life
  • Weekly Time Spent Talking to Other Students on Non-Coursework Intellectual Topics
  • Weekly Time Spent Socializing with Friends
  • Weekly Time Spent Partying
  • Weekly Time Spent Working for Pay
  • Weekly Time Spent on Volunteer Work
  • Weekly Time Spent on Student Clubs or Groups
  • Weekly Time Spent on Private Life Outside of University
• Learning Style
  • Independent Learning Style: Prefer to Work by Myself
  • Avoidant Learning Style: Coursework not Exciting
  • Collaborative Learning Style: Working With Others
  • Dependent Learning Style: Relying on Teachers
  • Competitive learning Style: Competing With Other Students
  • Participant Learning Style: Course Participation
  • Independent Learning Style: Study What is Important to Me
  • Avoidant Learning Style: Getting By
  • Collaborative Learning Style: Studying with Others
  • Dependent Learning Style: Highly Organized Courses
  • Competitive Learning Style: Stepping on Other Students' Toes
  • Participant Learning Style: Do Uninteresting Assignments Well

Section 2 Tables

Access to Computers

This section asks questions on access to computer technology. This includes questions on whether students have a computer and if so what type and whether it is connected to the Internet. There are also questions on where computers are used for a variety of programs. There are questions about the amount of time spent using computers for various tasks including playing games. There is an assessment of the adequacy of computer resources available to a student.

• Possession of Electronic Devices
• Age Respondents First Began Using a Computer
• Computer Possession
• Number of Computers Possessed
• Quality of Respondent's Main Computer
• Respondent's Main Computer Type
• Respondent's Main Computer Operating System
• How Respondent Obtained Computer
• How Often Respondent Allows Other Students to Use Their Computer
• Connection of Computer to the Internet
• Why the Respondent Does Not Connect Their Computer to the Internet
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Not Aware of Service
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: The Cost is Too High
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Computer Not Compatible
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Complexity
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Not Interested
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Can Use University Labs
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Can Use Public Community Computers
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Can Use Commercial Access
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Can Use Friend's Computer
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Can Use Family's Computer
  • Reason Not Connected to the Internet: Use Employer's Computer
• Time Spent Per Week Using a Variety of Computers
  • Weekly Time Spent on University Computers
  • Weekly Time Spent on Own Computer
  • Weekly Time Spent on Family's Computer
  • Weekly Time Spent on Friend's Computer
  • Weekly Time Spent on Other Computers
  • Weekly Time Spent on All Computers
• Time Spent in a Typical Week Playing These Video or Computer Games
  • Weekly Time Spent Playing Internet Games
  • Weekly Time Spent Playing Computer Games
  • Weekly Time Spent Playing Lan Games
  • Weekly Time Spent Playing Video Games
  • Weekly Time Spent on All Computer and Video Games
• Weekly Time Spent In Computer and Video Games in High School
• Where Respondent is Most Likely to Use Various Programs
  • Email Use Location
  • Word Processing Location
  • Chat Use Location
  • Group Messaging Location
  • Presentation Software Use Location
  • Web Browser Use Location
  • Data Analysis Use Location
  • Game Playing Location
• Adequacy of Computer Resources for Educational Needs
  • Adequacy of University Provided Computers
  • Adequacy of Own Computer
  • Adequacy of Other Computers

Section 3 Tables

Computer Skills

This section of the questionnaire contains questions on the computer skills of students. Respondents are asked to to assess their skill with respect to a variety of computer tasks. In addition respondents are asked to assess the importance of various sources for the development of their skills.

• Computer Ability of Self and Family
  • Computer Ability: Yourself
  • Computer Ability: Father (or Guardian)
  • Computer Ability: Mother (or Guardian)
  • Computer Ability: Most Computer Skilled Sibling
• Computer Experience Before Coming to University
  • Pre-University Computer Experiences: School Related
  • Pre-University Computer Experiences: Work Related
  • Pre-University Computer Experiences: Recreational and Home Related
• How Respondent Developed Knowledge About Computers and Computer Networks
  • Computer Skill Development: Professors
  • Computer Skill Development: Classmates
  • Computer Skill Development: Other Students
  • Computer Skill Development: Friends
  • Computer Skill Development: Family
  • Computer Skill Development: Help Sessions
  • Computer Skill Development: Librarians
  • Computer Skill Development: Computing Services
  • Computer Skill Development: Computer Course
  • Computer Skill Development: Requirements in Courses
  • Computer Skill Development: Self
  • Computer Skill Development: Employment Experience
  • Computer Skill Development: Other
• Self-ranking of Ability with Various Computer Programs
  • Computer Ability: Email
  • Computer Ability: Word Processing
  • Computer Ability: Newsreader
  • Computer Ability: Web Browser
  • Computer Ability: Data Analysis
  • Computer Ability: Games
  • Computer Ability: Presentation Packages
  • Computer Ability: Windows/DOS
  • Computer Ability: MAC/OS
  • Computer Ability: Downloading MP3s
  • Computer Ability: Burning CDs
  • Computer Ability: Editing HTML
  • Computer Ability: Editing/Converting Web Graphics
  • Computer Ability: Ftp Without a Web Browser
  • Computer Ability: Programming
  • Computer Ability: Network Configuration
  • Computer Ability: Configuring Computer Hardware

Section 4 Tables

Computers and Educational Work Activities

This section of the survey examines patterns of computer use and the educational activities of students. Most of the questions are about the frequency of activities. Many of the questions examine the frequency of the educational use of computers for a variety of tasks including email with instructors and classmates. There is also an attempt to gauge the frequency of computer use with respect to extracurricular computing, including email with friends and game playing. There are questions on the handling of information both with paper and with computers. Finally, there are questions on the cooperation of students around student work tasks with and without computers.

• Number of Courses
• Number of Courses With Computer Component
• Frequency of Computer Tasks
  • Frequency of Handwritten Assignments
  • Frequency of Typewriter Assignments
  • Frequency of Having Others Word Process for You
  • Frequency of Word Processing for Assignments
  • Frequency of Word Processing for Personal Use
  • Frequency of Data Analysis for Assignments
  • Frequency of Downloading MP3s
  • Frequency of Programming
  • Frequency of Course Internet Use
  • Frequency of Casual Internet Use
  • Frequency of Computer Chat Use
  • Frequency of Course Group Messaging
  • Frequency of Personal Group Messaging
  • Frequency of Course Chat Use
  • Frequency of Email with Instructors
  • Frequency of Email with Family
  • Frequency of Email with Friends
  • Frequency of Email with Classmates
  • Frequency of Computer Presentations
  • Frequency of Online Library Catalogue Searches
  • Frequency of Computer Game Playing
  • Frequency of Printing with Own Printer
  • Frequency of Printing with Friend's Printer
  • Frequency of Printing with University Printer
  • Frequency of Computer Lab Experiments
• Writing Techniques
  • Frequency of Handwritten Notes
  • Frequency of Handwriting Sections of Documents
  • Frequency of Handwriting Full Drafts of Documents
  • Frequency of Draft Printing
  • Frequency of Computer Note Taking
  • Frequency of Computer Writing with Paper Notes
  • Frequency of Writing Directly on a Computer
  • Frequency of Digital Backups
• Techniques for the Management of Computer Information
  • Frequency of Leaving Digital Information
  • Frequency of Saving Digital Information to a Computer File
  • Frequency of Saving Information to Own Data Management System
  • Frequency of Passing Access Information on to Someone Else
  • Frequency of Passing a Computer File to Someone Else
  • Frequency of Printing out Information to Make Notes
  • Frequency of Printing Paper Filing Digital Information
  • Frequency of Printing and Distributing Digital Information
  • Frequency of Emailing Digital Information to Someone Else
• Frequency of Outside-of-Class Communication and Work with Faculty
  • Frequency of Face-to-Face Communication with Instructors Outside of Class
  • Frequency of Working with a Faculty Member on Research Outside a Course
• Methods of Cooperation with Other Students
  • Frequency of Lending Lecture Notes
  • Frequency of Borrowing Lecture Notes
  • Frequency of Lending Old Assignments
  • Frequency of Borrowing Old Assignments
  • Frequency of Helping Other Students
  • Frequency of Getting Help from Other Students
  • Frequency of Joining a Study Group
  • Frequency of Using Email/Conferencing to Share Course Information
  • Frequency of Face-to-face Talking about Courses with Other Students
  • Frequency of Contributing to Pool of Assignments and Tests
  • Frequency of Using Pool of Assignments and Tests
  • Frequency of Trading Skills and Resources
  • Frequency of Typing for Another Student
  • Frequency of Talking on the Phone with Another Student about Course material

Section 5 Tables

Evaluation of Computer and Educational Experiences

This section of the questionnaire has questions on students' evaluations of their experiences. There are questions on: the importance of various methods of communication to their course experiences, their general assessment of their experiences with computers, there assessment of the effects of computers on their work and on the quality of education. There is also an assessment of the questionnaire.

• Importance of Methods of Communication to Course Experiences
  • Importance of in Class Discussion to Course Experiences
  • Importance of face-to-face Discussion with Other Students to Course Experiences
  • Importance of Out of Class face-to-face Discussion with Professors to Course Experiences
  • Importance of Group Messaging to Course Experiences
  • Importance of Email with Students to my Course Experiences
  • Importance of Email with Professors to Course Experiences
  • Importance of Computer Chat to Course Experiences
  • Importance of Telephone to Course Experiences
• Attitudes on General Computer Experiences
  • Computers and Academic Intellectual Excitement
  • Comfort with Computers
  • Overall Experience with Computers on Campus
  • Enough Campus Computers
  • Enough Institutional Technical Support
  • Students with Computer Skills Get Respect from Peers
  • The High Cost of Computing a Potential Barrier
• Attitudes on Computer Communication and Cooperation
  • Effectiveness of Computer Messaging for Course Communication with Other Students
  • Effectiveness of Computers for Social Communication With Other Students
  • Effectiveness of Computers for Communicating With Instructors
  • Evaluation of Email Communication with Instructors as Compared to Face-to-face
  • Effects of Computer Communication on Relationships with Classmates
  • Reliance on Other Students for Help with Computer Work
  • Other Students Reliance on Respondent for Help with Computer Work
  • Reliance on Faculty for Help with Computer Work
  • Interaction with Other Students Around Getting Computers Working
• Attitudes on Computers and Work Processes
  • Computers Increasing the Amount of Work
  • Computers Changing the Type of Work
  • Computers Saving Time
  • Computers Enabling Effective Work
  • Computers and the Quality of Work
  • Computers and Frustration
  • Computers and Satisfaction
  • Computer Use and the Increase in What Has to be Learned
  • Computer Use and Increases in Instructor Expectations
  • Web Course Materials and Class Attendance
  • Email With Instructors and Class Attendance
• Attitudes on Computers and the Quality of Education
  • Computers and Impersonal Learning
  • Computers and the Ease of Learning
  • Computer Use Learning Opportunities at Institution
  • Rapidity of Application of Computers in Teaching
  • The Need for Courses in Computer Use
  • Preference for Courses with Computer Use
  • Computers Replacing Lectures and Discussion
  • Computer Instruction Replacing Some Conventional Class and Lab Time
  • Computer Based Instruction Replacing all Face-to-face Contact in Some Courses
  • Avoiding Courses with Computer Component
  • Requiring Students to Have a Computer
  • Institution Supplying Students with Computers
  • Computer Competence as a Requirement
  • Computer Skills and Student Work
  • Computer Skills and Job Requirements
• Evaluation of the Questionnaire
  • Clarity and Organization
  • The Importance of the Issues
  • Length: Too Long
  • Length: Could Shorten
  • Preference for Paper
  • Importance of Incentive
  • Enjoyment of Surveys

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Copyright Brian L. Campbell
Page last modified: July 9, 2004