E-COMMERCE ADOPTION IN THE FRUIT AND VEGETABLE SECTOR: AN ANALYSIS IN PANDEMIC TIMES

The covid-19 pandemic encouraged e-commerce adoption by companies in the fruit and vegetable value chain in response to decreased sales. Despite this, certain challenges for the efficient use of e-commerce persist in the industry. Therefore, this research sought to identify the level of adoption of this business approach in organizations that make part of distribution link of the fruit and vegetable value chain in the city of Bogotá (Colombia). The emica methodology was implemented to recognize the challenges for a more competitive management by this sector in the post-pandemic era. Our findings show that organizations in this sector make extensive use of technologies and present a medium degree of maturity regarding e-commerce, making it necessary to improve interaction with customers in order to promote their products. We could establish that the use of social networks and valuable content creation improve marketing processes, while the need to engage more complex variables —such as digital traffic and omnichannel presence— is recognized a limitation for fully understanding the factors associated with e-commerce adoption. © 2023, Universidad Nacional de Colombia. All rights reserved.

Supplemental Instruction to Decrease Equity Gaps in GateKeeper Engineering Courses (ERM)

This study explores the impact of Technology-Assisted Supplemental Instruction (TASI) on the sense of belonging and academic achievement of URM identified students in Statics courses at a large public HSI university. TASI is a peer-led tutoring service in partnership with faculty support that targets high failure rate STEM courses, in this case, three different iterations of Statics. Students completed four surveys that measured demographics, sense of belonging in their field of study, and confidence in their ability to do well in their courses. In addition, TASI attendance, students' academic and enrollment data were collected. Preliminary belonging data at the beginning of the term showed the nearly 80% of Latinx students agreed with the statements: “I sometimes feel like other students in my field of study have skills that I do not,” and “When I struggle in a class I feel that I don't belong in the field”. Linear regression also shows that the main predictor of student grades in Statics are identifying as a URM student or Pell recipient. TASI has the goal of increasing academic support and therefore performance to alleviate these feelings and ensure student persistence. Using matched pairs analysis, the data shows a statistically significant increase of 0.4 to 0.5 in course grade on a 4-point scale. These results were most apparent in URM students. The rate of failing grades for URM students decreased up to twenty percent (depending on the section). The impact of the TASI is more evident for students of color during the COVID pandemic and virtual learning. The use of an anti-deficit lens highlights how imperative it is to have meaningful, useful, and accessible interventions. Student facilitators, access, and awareness of programs are noted as crucial to success. © American Society for Engineering Education, 2022.

Technological acceptance of virtual platforms in university students: an analysis in times of pandemic

The global health emergency generated by Covid-19 has transformed the traditional learning model, generating a generalized sudden foray into virtual learning environments. Process in which ease of use, perceived usefulness, and attitude toward technology play a fundamental role in the acceptance of virtual platforms as a tool for the teaching-learning process. The objective was to evaluate the acceptance of the use of virtual platforms by university students in the times of the Coronavirus Pandemic (COVID-19). A confirmatory factor analysis was performed in order to evaluate the four constructs of the TAM technological acceptance model (perceived usefulness, ease of use, attitude, and intention to use) in a sample of 200 undergraduate students. It was concluded that the perceived utility and ease of use are antecedents of the attitude and this time it is decisive of the intention to use virtual platforms in the academic activities of university students. Similarly, it was found that gender does not affect the acceptance of technology in the use of virtual platforms. IEEE