Influence of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Literacy on Academic Performance of Taraba State University Undergraduate Students, Jalingo

Abstract

The emergence of the computer age has made Information and 
Communication Technology necessary components of instruction, with the 
hope of improving students’ level of performance in schools. However, the 
present situation of undergraduate students shows contradicting realities. 
This study investigated influence of ICT Literacy on academic performance 
of undergraduate students in Taraba State University, Jalingo. Two research 
questions and one hypothesis guided the study. Descriptive survey research 
design was used for the study. The population was 16,652 undergraduate 
students of Taraba State University Jalingo. A sample of 400 students was 
selected for the study using multi-stage sampling procedure. A fifteen-item 
instrument tagged “Information and Communication Technology Literacy 
Achievement Test (ICTLAT), with some items adapted from the existing 
instruments of John, Izang and Akorede (2017) and United Nations Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Survey 
Instrument for ICT literacy was used for data collection. Mean and Standard 
Deviation were used to answer the research questions while independent ttest was used to test the null hypothesis at a 0.05 level of significance. 
Findings revealed that students’ ICT Literacy was low and there was a 
significant mean difference between the Cumulative Grade Point Average 
(CGPA) of ICT literate students and the CGPA of ICT non-literate students 
in favour of the former (t=12.665; P<0.05) implying that there was 
influence of ICT literacy on students’ academic performance. The study 
concluded that ICT literacy significantly influences the academic 
performance of undergraduates at Taraba State University, Jalingo. 
Recommendations were made that lecturers should engage students in 
activities which require the use of ICT facilities for instructional delivery and 
that the ICT Directorate of the university should be actively involved in 
orientation exercises of matriculating students so as to acquaint them with 
the facilities at their disposal and how to put them to good use while on 
campus.