The use of a Learning Management System (LMS) and information processing behaviours of special-need students in higher educational environments

Abstract

This article discusses the early findings of a qualitative study on information-processing behaviors in using a Learning Management System (LMS) among undergraduate students with intellectual disabilities. The study focuses on how special-need students seek, discern, and make use of academic and non-academic information in the process of learning. Students with intellectual disabilities have limitations in getting and understanding lectures and instructions from lecturers or academic support staff. While the presence of a Learning Management System (LMS) highly assists students in the learning process, a specific approach must be used to cater to their needs. Data from qualitative interviews and observation of a group of students with diverse intellectual disabilities in an Indonesian university shows the evidence. The findings suggest three views of information processing abilities and attitudes toward information exhibited by students with learning disabilities.