Status of Digital Education Infusion in Higher Education Institutions a case study of Timor-Leste

The development of higher education in the 21st century is growing significantly and the massification of higher education is also increasing due to population growth. The increasing number of student enrollments in Timor-Leste higher education also shares the same trend as those observed in its regional counterparts. Meanwhile, the demand in the quality assurance area also requires higher education providers in Timor-Leste to design curricula that caters to both national and global demands. Thus, ICT integration in education is one fundamental aspect for the country in meeting such a demand.

The study aims: i) to understand the current state of ICT development in Timor-Leste’s higher education sector; ii) to measure the current progress of ICT development and implementation in higher education institutions, particularly for the enhancement of teaching and learning services. iii) to establish demographic characteristics of ICT development of higher education institutions; and iv) to produce a comprehensive report with key ICT development challenges facing the higher education institutions of Timor-Leste.

This research study uses a mixed method, both qualitative and quantitative approaches. The qualitative approach is based on structural interviews for selected educational leaders and managers. The interviews are conducted directly face-to-face and virtually, asking the interviewees’ opinions on the concept and practice of ICT adoption in education, implementation, and the challenges and opportunities. The quantitative method is based on questionnaires for academic staff, course directors, faculties, and students designed to investigate the management experiences, satisfaction, and the availability of resources involved in the process of teaching and learning.

The study results show that based on the digital education infusion status, the institutions of higher education in Timor-Leste can be categorized into the following classification: i) EMERGING stage: ETCI, ICS, IBTL, ISC-BAUCAU, ISC-MANUFAHI, DIT-KREO; ii) APPLYING stage: DIT, IOB, ICFP, UNTL, ISFIT, UNPAZ, IPDC, ISC, UNDIL, UNITAL, IFFS, ISJB, IPB, JSI, UCT, IOB-MALIANA; None of the institutions are yet to be categorized into the two advance orders, namely the INFUSING AND TRANSFORMING stages.

Further research is required to re-examine the topic covering a larger sample of respondents, with a special focus on the dimensions of Professional development for leaders and lecturers as well as Teaching and learning pedagogies.