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1 – 10 of over 2000
Article
Publication date: 5 February 2018

I.M.S. Weerasinghe and R.L.S. Fernando

The purpose of this study is to explain critical factors affecting student satisfaction levels in selected state universities in Sri Lanka.

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to explain critical factors affecting student satisfaction levels in selected state universities in Sri Lanka.

Design/methodology/approach

The study has applied an quantitative survey design guided by six hypotheses. A conceptual framework has been developed to address the research questions on the basis of a literature review. The study is based on an undergraduate sample from four state universities, and it presents results of factor analytics and correlational and regression analyses.

Findings

Evidence to support construct validity and reliability of all survey-based scales measuring the key variables has been found. The quality of the academic staff, university facilities, degree program, administrative staff, university location and university image have been correlated significantly with student satisfaction levels measured at 0.45, 0.47, 0.51, 0.31, 0.39 and 0.66, respectively. The statistically significant predictors are: the quality of university facilities, the quality of the degree program and the university image, with the image being the strongest predictor.

Practical implications

The study offers a conceptual framework to guide future research and validated scales for measuring student satisfaction levels in a national higher education system in a developing region that is aspiring toward a knowledge-based economy where tertiary education is free. Five recommendations are provided for policymakers.

Originality/value

Research shows high variabilities in the models used and the findings of studies on factors affecting student satisfaction levels in universities. The study is among the first large-scale studies of student satisfaction levels in the Sri Lankan state university system, where little data exist on why students are dissatisfied and fail to complete their degrees.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 26 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 21 October 2021

Tsipi Heart, Elad Finklestein and Menashe Cohen

The purpose of this study is to assess students’ perceptions of four teaching and learning (T&L) methods used in a blended learning Contract Law course, namely, frontal, written…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to assess students’ perceptions of four teaching and learning (T&L) methods used in a blended learning Contract Law course, namely, frontal, written assignments, simulations and online asynchronous T&L.

Design/methodology/approach

Law students (n = 417) filled in an anonymous questionnaire on their relative satisfaction with the four methods and their preferences. Participation was voluntary. The questionnaire was administered at the end of term, in class, prior to the Covid-19 restrictions. The results were calculated using Statistical Package for Social Sciences.

Findings

The students preferred face-to-face T&L in class and ranked online T&L last. Notably, 84% preferred blended learning combining all four methods. These results suggest that the online T&L for this Contract Law course setting was unsuccessful and that teachers should experiment with blending various T&L methods to maximize learning effectiveness and students’ satisfaction.

Research limitations/implications

The results only reflect one course in one year among law students, thus affecting the generalizability of the findings. This is further exacerbated by the convenience sample and the fact that only one type of blending was evaluated. Overall, the findings indicated that the survey participants were not yet ready to embrace online T&L as a primary component of blended T&L.

Practical implications

This study Alternative online solutions should be sought to foster social learning when face-to-face learning is not feasible for reasons, such as geographic distance, students’ disabilities or the current pandemic that prohibits social gatherings. This conclusion is particularly pertinent with respect to the impact of Covid-19 on face-to-face learning. Designers of blended learning programs should listen more carefully to students’ voices, and bear in mind that minimizing face-to-face T&L for various reasons might jeopardize students’ satisfaction, which is likely to decrease learning effectiveness.

Social implications

It is important that students’ perceptions be considered when building future T&L programs, especially students’ need for collaborative and social learning.

Originality/value

This study assessed four T&L methods administered in one course during the pre-Covid-19 era. This setting, which is rare, enabled a real-life assessment of the effectiveness of these popular methods as perceived by students.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 30 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 14 May 2021

Marcelo Benetti Corrêa da Silva, Juliana Matte, Suélen Bebber, Bianca Libardi and Ana Cristina Fachinelli

This research goal was to analyze factors that may influence value-in-use and satisfaction perceived by university students, from the built environment, price fairness and…

Abstract

Purpose

This research goal was to analyze factors that may influence value-in-use and satisfaction perceived by university students, from the built environment, price fairness and teaching care.

Design/methodology/approach

For this purpose, a survey was conducted with 900 students from a university in southern Brazil.

Findings

The main results proved that the antecedents considered in the study have a significant and positive influence on the value-in-use and satisfaction of university students. Furthermore, the built environment, price fairness, teaching care and satisfaction explained 87.8% of the value-in-use of students, while the built environment, price fairness and teaching care explained 74.9% of student satisfaction.

Originality/value

The study proved that after receiving the educational service, if the student can apply his or her acquired knowledge and skills, he or she will find a fair price, will be satisfied and will obtain value in the service purchased. Thus, even if the educational market is changing in recent years, the importance of the teacher and the built environment are factors that influence price fairness and increase the satisfaction and value-in-use perceived by the student.

Details

Benchmarking: An International Journal, vol. 29 no. 2
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1463-5771

Keywords

Open Access
Article
Publication date: 13 June 2023

Aklilu Alemu

Background: Most children in low-income countries complete their elementary education with low competency in essential reading, writing, and arithmetic skills. Besides, about 250…

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Abstract

Background: Most children in low-income countries complete their elementary education with low competency in essential reading, writing, and arithmetic skills. Besides, about 250 million students are not learning the basics, most of whom have spent at least four years in school, and this failure is coined the global learning crisis. This study aimed to examine educational quality management practices perceived by secondary school teachers.

Methods: The study employed a multilevel mixed-method design. Employing a simple random sampling technique, the researcher selected 251 teachers from 10 secondary schools in the research regions. He collected data through a researcher-designed questionnaire, school standards, and student achievement records from November 2018 to March 2019. He analyzed data from a questionnaire using frequency, percentage, mean, Pearson correlation, and exploratory factor analysis. The document review concerning quality management was analyzed using content analysis to triangulate the quantitative findings.

Results: At the school level, the study revealed the impracticality of laboratories. Besides, incompetent and unmotivated teachers and students ran the education business from the input side. At the same level, principals' management practices on staff development and encouraging parents to support their schools were low. The principals' management practices in the teaching-learning process were also undesirable at the classroom level. Overall, the study revealed incredibly insufficient input, process, and output management in the study context.

Conclusion: Hence, the study concluded that it is difficult to achieve the very objectives of producing creative, critical, and problem-solving individuals through this type of educational provision and its management. Due to this, it is not easy to achieve quality education for all goals.

Details

Emerald Open Research, vol. 1 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2631-3952

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 6 May 2021

Marcelo Benetti Corrêa da Silva, Juliana Matte, Suélen Bebber, Mayron Dalla Santa de Carvalho, Suane de Atayde Moschen and Ana Cristina Fachinelli

This study aims to test and analyze factors that may influence the satisfaction of university students, specifically, from the built environment, price fairness and teaching care.

Abstract

Purpose

This study aims to test and analyze factors that may influence the satisfaction of university students, specifically, from the built environment, price fairness and teaching care.

Design/methodology/approach

A survey was conducted with 250 students from a university in southern Brazil. The data were analyzed by structural equation modeling.

Findings

The main results proved that the built environment, price fairness and teaching care have a significant and positive influence on the satisfaction of university students.

Practical implications

The factors presented explanation power for student satisfaction, which shows that they are essential aspects and, therefore, must be observed by universities to satisfy their students.

Originality/value

The study identifies the impact of factors such as the environment, price and teaching service on student satisfaction.

Article
Publication date: 2 September 2019

Viraiyan Teeroovengadum, Robin Nunkoo, Christian Gronroos, T.J. Kamalanabhan and Ashley Keshwar Seebaluck

The purpose of this study is to validate the higher education service quality (HESQUAL) scale using a confirmatory approach and test an improved structural model that predicts…

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Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to validate the higher education service quality (HESQUAL) scale using a confirmatory approach and test an improved structural model that predicts student loyalty from image, perceived value, satisfaction and service quality. In addition to validating the HESQUAL scale using a confirmatory approach, two other main limitations in the extant literature are addressed.

Design/methodology/approach

The model is tested using data collected from 501 students enrolled in different higher education institutions in Mauritius. A two-stage approach to structural equation modeling is used whereby the measurement model is first tested using confirmatory factor analysis and followed by the assessment of the structural model.

Findings

Importantly, results indicate that student satisfaction is influenced by technical service quality, image and perceived value, but not by functional service quality. Both dimensions of service quality however are significant predictors of image and perceived value. The study uses a comprehensive measure of service quality and demonstrates that it is worthwhile to consider functional service quality as higher-order model and clearly distinguish between functional and technical quality, as both the technical and functional aspects play an important role in shaping students’ perceptions and behaviors.

Originality/value

First, in the existing literature, service quality has not been considered as a second-order factor model in structural models of student satisfaction and loyalty, thus lacking either precision or parsimony. Second, the transformative quality aspect of higher education has been largely neglected in previous research testing such predictive models. The model delineates service quality into the functional and transformative (technical) aspects and treats functional service quality as a second-order factor comprising nine sub-dimensions.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 27 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 27 July 2020

María del Carmen Arrieta and Beatrice Avolio

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that impact the quality of the education service in a Peruvian private university, based on the perception of students and…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to examine the factors that impact the quality of the education service in a Peruvian private university, based on the perception of students and graduates.

Design/methodology/approach

The sample consisted of 29 students and 20 graduates from the Administration and Finance Program of a Peruvian private university. The data was collected through focus groups and in-depth interviews based on the students’ and graduates’ perspectives of their experiences. The collected data was subjected to content analysis.

Findings

The study identified ten factors or the underlying dimensions that drive the quality of the education service provided by a Peruvian private university. The factors are professors, lecturers, curriculum, extracurricular activities, position and recognition of the university, infrastructure, library, admission, adequate communication mechanisms with faculty and authorities and services. The main quality indicators of the education service were the professors and curriculum planning. As the students were using the education service, they were more focused on “how” they received the service, rather than “what” services they received, i.e. they evaluated the quality of the process. In contrast, graduates gave more importance to functional service quality. They evaluated the quality of “what they received,” i.e. the result.

Research limitations/implications

The study has several limitations. First, the qualitative approach does not allow generalizing data. The sample size was relatively small and only involved one Peruvian private university. The study was based on the respondent’s perceptions, which were considered accurate.

Practical implications

Based on the study findings, the authors made recommendations to meet the needs of the students and graduates. These findings can help universities to develop strategies that improve educational quality and to allocate resources more effectively. Further research could focus on factors that impact service quality in higher education at different stages of the student lifecycle, namely, applicants (service expectations), students (quality of the process) and graduates (results). The authors suggest validating these results quantitatively.

Originality/value

The study proposes a framework of the higher education service quality based on the experiences of students and graduates that can be used by higher education institutions to continue improving educational quality. The originality of the study lies in the perspective on service quality according to the experiences of students and graduates. Also, this study provides empirical evidence on service quality research in Latin American higher education institutions.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 28 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 12 October 2022

Pankaj Kumar, Parveen Kumar, Ramesh Kumar Garg, Manoj Panwar and Vaibhav Aggarwal

The present study examines the foremost determinants of teachers' perception, i.e. teachers' satisfaction, attitude and continuance intention towards adopting e-learning in Higher…

Abstract

Purpose

The present study examines the foremost determinants of teachers' perception, i.e. teachers' satisfaction, attitude and continuance intention towards adopting e-learning in Higher Educational Institutions (HEIs) in India during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Design/methodology/approach

Data were collected through online Google forms from 1,111 (1,060 considered useable) teachers of different HEIs in India using the purposive sampling technique and was analyzed by PLS-SEM (performing partial least squares-structural equation modeling).

Findings

Results of this study show that perceived usefulness (PU) followed by institutional support, perceived ease of use (PEOU), and teacher-student interaction positively and significantly impact teachers' satisfaction. Results also revealed that perceived usefulness (PU), institutional support, and satisfaction significantly affect teachers' attitude. Finally and most notably, teachers' continuance intention towards using online teaching in HEIs is most significantly influenced by teachers' satisfaction than perceived usefulness (PU), perceived ease of use (PEOU), and attitude.

Originality/value

The authors anticipate that this study brings a significant and valuable input to the existing literature by providing inclusive research in a more harmonizing understanding of the teachers' satisfaction, attitude, and continuance intention with online teaching-learning practices in diverse educational institutions.

Details

Higher Education, Skills and Work-Based Learning, vol. 13 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 2042-3896

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 February 2021

Hasni Gayathma Gunasekara, Pournima Sridarran and Dilakshan Rajaratnam

Facilities management (FM) has become a revolutionary profession, which adds value to the built environment. Compared to other industries, the development of the FM industry is at…

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Abstract

Purpose

Facilities management (FM) has become a revolutionary profession, which adds value to the built environment. Compared to other industries, the development of the FM industry is at a preliminary stage owing to poor adaptation of digitalisation. Although FM procurement process has improved over time, it is still complex, inefficient and challenging with the lack of digital innovations. Blockchain technology has emerged as a revolutionary digital technology under “Procurement 4.0”. The purpose of this paper is to develop a framework that enables the effective use of blockchain technology for FM procurement process.

Design/methodology/approach

Data collection using interviews was performed in two stages adopting a mono method qualitative methodological choice using case studies and survey strategies. Template analysis and content analysis techniques were used to analyse the collected data.

Findings

Through the findings, main steps in the current FM process were identified. It was revealed, manual procurement has issues related to, efficiency, data security, communication and transparency. Similarly, e-procurement systems also have issues related to data security, poor integration and transparency. FM industry has identified the requirement of transforming into an advanced digitalised technology-based procurement system. This study revealed, blockchain features to overcome these issues and the application of blockchain technology in different steps of the procurement process through the developed framework.

Originality/value

The developed framework offers a solution for the future technological transformation of FM procurement using blockchain technology.

Details

Journal of Facilities Management , vol. 20 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1472-5967

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 25 November 2020

Sartaj Chaudhary and Ajoy Kumar Dey

The past decade has seen a proliferation of research on service quality in education. However, little attempt has been made to understand the impact of student perceived service…

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Abstract

Purpose

The past decade has seen a proliferation of research on service quality in education. However, little attempt has been made to understand the impact of student perceived service quality on sustainability practices of the university or the effect of such practices on student satisfaction. To bridge this gap, this paper aims to propose a conceptual framework to examine the relationships between service quality, sustainable practices and student satisfaction from the perspective of students.

Design/methodology/approach

A quantitative methodology was employed, and data were collected through an online structured questionnaire. Responses were gathered from undergraduate students (n = 419) studying in four colleges affiliated to a university in Delhi, India. Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were used to validate the instruments. Structural equation modelling was used to examine the associations between the constructs.

Findings

The research revealed that student perceived service quality in education has a significant effect on their perception of sustainable practices of the university and student satisfaction. Further, sustainable practices predict student satisfaction.

Research limitations/implications

The findings may guide the key decision-makers in the education industry to incorporate service quality and sustainable practices in their strategy and thereby enhance student satisfaction.

Originality/value

This research is the first of its kind to examine the impact of service quality as perceived by students on the perception of sustainability practices of the university. Further, it empirically tests the effect of perceived sustainability practices on student satisfaction.

Details

Quality Assurance in Education, vol. 29 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0968-4883

Keywords

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