Information and communications technology (ICT) integration in teaching and learning : a critical analysis.

Abstract

Technology availability is quite often mistaken for technology adoption and use. In the White Paper on E-Education, launched by the South African National Department of Education, the government has indicated its intention to ensure that every school has access to a wide choice of diverse, high quality communication services which will benefit all learners and local communities. It is important that the National Department of Education recognizes that, regardless of the amount of technology and its sophistication, technology will not be used unless educators have the skills, knowledge and attitudes necessary to infuse it into the curriculum. The study focused on educator preparedness to integrate Information and Communications Technology (ICT) into the curriculum. The findings of the study suggest that educators have positive attitudes towards ICT integration in education. One strong predictor of educators' attitudes towards ICT integration was computer attributes followed closely by cultural perceptions and, to a limited extent, by computer competence. Educator attitudes were also predicted by constructs extracted from the different Information Systems (IS) model/theories for technology adoption. The strongest construct to predict educators' attitudes toward ICT integration was extrinsic motivation followed by perceived usefulness, complexity, perceived behavioural control and relative advantage. The results point to the importance of educators' vision of technology itself, their experiences with it, their perceived computer competence, and the cultural conditions that surround its introduction into schools in shaping their attitudes towards technology and its subsequent diffusion into their educational practice. A combination of the different constructs from the IS models/theories was able to account for as much as 83% of the variance in educator attitudes toward technology and thus technology adoption. This is a significant result since most previous research has only been able to account for between 17% and 69% (Venkatesh et a!., 2003) of the variance in user intentions to use technology. These constructs (the strong predictors) were grouped to form a new model which is proposed for predicting educator technology adoption. Further, Perceptual Control Theory was used as a framework for understanding educator adoption of technology. This framework considers educators' use of technology by examining the goals of educators and how the use of technology might help or hinder their goals. Educator lack of computer competence is a major challenge for the KwaZulu-Natal Department of Education, and an immediate plan of action is required that will address this through educator professional development.