The incorporation of ICT in higher education. The contribution of ROC curves in the graphic visualization of differences in the analysis of the variables
Authors: Muñoz‐Repiso Ana García‐Valcárcel , Tejedor Francisco Javier Tejedor 
Published: January 2012

This paper has focused on the productive use of information and communications technology (ICT) by university students and its influence on academic performance. The objective is to determine whether a comparison of successful and non‐successful students (in relation to academic achievements) versus the variables studied (linked to the process of ICT incorporation) can help us to establish contextual and behavioral patterns associated with good academic performance. This differential analysis is carried out by making basic statistical comparisons (student's t‐test). The data analysis is completed by applying receiver operating characteristic curves, a methodology of new application in the area of education. The sample was composed of 1194 students enrolled in 40 different subjects at various universities in two countries, Mexico and Spain. Students gave a very positive appraisal of the value of ICTs to support the teaching process, but they express an intermediate level of satisfaction with the teaching conditions in subjects, which are using the support of these technologies. Moreover, there is a clear relation between high scores in the variables associated with the processes of incorporation of ICT (satisfaction with teaching, higher levels of competence in ICT, less training needs in ICT, more favorable attitudes toward their integration in training processes) and achieving higher academic qualifications.

Practitioner Notes

What is already known about this topic

The incorporation of information and communications technology (ICT) into teaching and learning processes is going on at the university as a whole.

A number of researches have been developed to know the influence of different variables (personal, organizational, ...) in the integration of ICT and its impact on academic success.

The results do not show clear evidence about how certain variables help to improve achievements in ICT‐mediated contexts, although most studies consider relevant variables as teaching conditions, students’ competence in ICT, ICT assessment for learning and students’ attitudes toward ICT.

What this paper adds

Analysis of the impact of the aforementioned variables on students’ academic success on two related cultural contexts (Salamanca and Chihuahua), both in a similar process of incorporating ICT.

In terms of methodology, the use of receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves to plot the differences in the variables studied between groups of successful and unsuccessful academic achievements.

Implications for practice and/or policy

Knowledge of the importance of studied variables on the academic success in developing training programs to meet their training needs and achieve the improved skills of students.

Assessment of ICT by students as academic self‐learning tools.

To suggest the use of ROC curves to express graphically the differences between groups for the study variables in the field of educational research.