How engineering students use STEM e-textbooks

Abstract

Higher education in South Africa has undergone significant transformation and restructuring, posing unique challenges for both students and lecturers. Amidst these changes, the rise of digital technologies is introducing novel learning opportunities. However, effectively harnessing these technologies often requires the development of new digital literacy practices. In the context of engineering education, where digital technology is increasingly prevalent, understanding how engineering students use STEM e-textbooks is crucial. Despite the growing use of e-textbooks in engineering courses, not all South African students are comfortable with this transition. Engaging with online texts embedded with resources such as hyperlinks, audio clips, graphs, or charts necessitates specific skills and practices. Data were collected through individual and focus group interviews, observations, and think-aloud protocols. The study employs affordances framework to understand the pattern of interaction, and the utilisation of their affordances. The findings reveal distinct patterns of interaction with e-textbooks among students, with most preferring a mix of multimedia and other digital features over traditional text-based reading. This research contributes to the growing body of knowledge by conceptualising digital literacy practices and pedagogy through the lens of an affordance theory.