Abstract

Nowadays, Electronic Commerce (EC) course is becoming one of the most important taught courses at all business schools due to increased businesses over the Internet network by utilizing all available technologies. However, the success of such courses cannot be measured by number of students who pass or fail but rather by how such courses influence and can change the daily life of these students. Previous literature stressed on the important role of the teacher in developing students’ skills and knowledge and transferring this expertise outside the classroom. This study explores the factors explain teachers' influence on learners' use of EC technology outside the classroom. A questionnaire (survey) was developed and distributed to the students enrolled in the “introduction to EC” course at the Jordan of University. Using structured equation modeling (SEM) a total of 545 valid questionnaires were retrieved and analyzed. The results of the study showed that teachers’ capacity support and behavior support are significant factors that established a facilitating condition which have a significant impact on students' computer self-efficacy. On the other hand, teachers’ affection support and computer self-efficacy are found to be significant factors that strengthened students’ perceived usefulness which supported the use of EC technology outside the classroom. As a result of increased students’ computer self-efficacy and perceived usefulness, the empirical analysis revealed positive significant effect on students’ use of EC technologies outside the classroom. This research presented a set of recommendations and polices that are very handful in developing successful EC courses that support the teachers’ role, leverage student knowledge that goes beyond the classroom settings.

Key words: Electronic commerce, student skills, teacher influence, technology.