Employing a Descriptive Model to Assess E-learning Readiness of Palestinian Public Secondary Schools

A growing interest in e-learning has increased in recent decades due to the potential it offers in equipping twenty-first century learners with the skills necessary for succeeding in the fast-paced digital world they live in. Despite its promise, numerous challenges have stood in the way of successful implementation of this new learning paradigm in many developing countries. This study examines the overall level of e-learning readiness in Palestinian public secondary schools focusing on the aspects of e-readiness which present as opportunities and challenges to its implementation. Following a thorough review of the literature, an e-readiness instrument was developed which relied upon an assessment for developing countries. Teachers in public secondary schools in 11 directorates across the West Bank region completed the assessment and twelve experts and professionals in the fields of education and e-learning were interviewed. The overall readiness of Palestinian public secondary schools was found to be at a Level 3, Ready but needs few improvements. Perceived Usefulness, Educational Institution, People, and Technology were at a Level 3 Ready, but needs a few improvements and Training, Perceived Ease of Use, and Content Availability were at Level 2 Not ready, needs some work. Perceived Usefulness was found to possess the highest level of readiness amongst the factors studied while Content Availability possessed the lowest level. The findings provide several implications on the implementation of e-learning in public secondary Palestinian schools in the West Bank including a framework for understanding e-readiness factors which influence the process.