STUDENT ACCEPTANCE LEVEL TOWARD THE USE OF ONLINE FACILITIES TO SUPPORT FLEXIBLE LEARNING ACTIVITIES BASED ON THE DESIGN ELEMENTS OF THE HEUTAGOGICAL APPROACH

Heutagogical learning approach is a flexible self-directive learning method aimed at forming highly motivated students thus enabling them to design their own learning approach according to their individual interests, whether in formal or informal situations. The main focus of this study is within the scope of the design elements of the heutagogy approach namely exploration, creation, collaboration, connection, sharing, and reflection. A total of 102 respondents involving a group of junior students (semester one) and senior students (semester five) from the Diploma in Information Technology program of three polytechnics; Politeknik Kuching Sarawak, Politeknik Muadzam Shah, and Politeknik Kuala Terengganu have provided feedback on the study conducted through a questionnaire that includes 24 items based on a five-point Likert scale. Item validation used the Cronbach Alpha method where the value obtained exceeds 0.80 for each heutagogy element (each element consists of four items). The findings of the study found students’ level of acceptance toward the use of online facilities to support their learning activities is good (mean score above 3.80) but there are significant differences between junior and senior student’s acceptance level in several elements of heutagogy, namely are collaboration, connection, and reflection elements. In conclusion, the heutagogical approach needs to be further strengthened to support joint efforts in producing holistic graduates.