Instructor-practitioner collaborations via a web platform – design and practitioners' intention-to-use

Abstract

The construction industry is rapidly changing due to the greater adoption of innovations and technology. This has necessitated changes in the competencies that the industry demands from new graduates. For academia to meet the changing needs of the industry, the inputs of practitioners are needed to complement academic pedagogical efforts. This study leverages the potential of Web 2.0 to develop a web platform called ConPEC to facilitate instructor-practitioner collaborations for enhancing student learning. ConPEC is aimed at providing instructors with equitable access to practitioners, increasing the participation of practitioners in instructors' pedagogical efforts, and enabling greater interaction of students with their communities of practice (CoP). These could facilitate achieving a proper blend of theory and practice in construction engineering education as well as ensure that students possess the competencies that the industry demands. This study demonstrates the efficacy of design principles in designing information systems. This study also demonstrates the usage of the Technology Acceptance Model (TAM) to explain and understand practitioners' acceptance of ConPEC. The findings reveal that practitioners perceived ConPEC to be useful, easy to use, and user-friendly. Practitioners’ behavioral intention-to-use ConPEC is significantly influenced by attitude toward usage, perceived ease of use, and trust. Trust also significantly influenced perceived ease of use. However, perceived usefulness has no direct significant influence on practitioners’ behavioral intention-to-use ConPEC. The study uncovers practitioners' acceptance behavior toward ConPEC which could be leveraged for further system development. The study also provides a framework that can be leveraged in diverse domains to develop similar initiatives aimed at addressing skill gaps in fresh graduates.