Tutor Quality, Facilitating Conditions, and Perceived Usefulness as Predictors of Pre-service Teachers’ Satisfaction in an E-learning Environment

Abstract

Student satisfaction is one of the components used to measure the success and effectiveness of e-learning. This study examined the determinants resulting in pre-service teachers' satisfaction in an e-learning environment. Using structural equation modelling, student satisfaction was assigned as the endogenous variable, while tutor quality, perceived usefulness, and facilitating condition were the exogenous variables. Similarly, the construct was tested for its mediation effect towards student satisfaction from teacher quality and facilitating conditions, respectively. A total of (n=471) pre-service teachers enrolled in one of the colleges of education in Bhutan voluntarily responded to the survey questionnaire that followed a cross-sectional design. The results of the structural equation analyses indicated that student satisfaction was significantly determined by its antecedents, with tutor quality and facilitating conditions taken together resulting in an R² of 0.82. Moreover, it was observed that tutor quality and facilitating conditions exerted a positive direct effect on the satisfaction dimension. The results also revealed that perceived usefulness has a statistically positive mediated effect on student satisfaction through tutor quality and facilitating conditions. The model proposed and tested in this study demonstrates that the tutor quality, facilitating conditions, and perceived usefulness can measure the e-learning satisfaction of students. The findings of this research may be helpful for administrators, policy planners and practitioners in the field of e-learning development to identify the elements that affect student satisfaction and further strengthen the existing e-learning programmes, particularly in developing Asian countries.