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05/02/2018

The impact of ICT in class from teachers’ perspective

L’impacte de les TIC a l’aula,  des del punt de vista del professorat
EDO Group (Organizational Development Team) of the Applied Pedagogy Department Aplicada develops a national study about teachers’ perception about the impact of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) in class. The analysis of the results show change in teachers’ view of ICT, as well as the improvement of their abilities, although traditional models persist, especially in secondary education.
iStockPhoto: NosUA

ICT effects exist and they manifest in multiple ways. They have entered in the life of teachers’ life, educational centres and their ways of interaction between the educational community, and they are here to stay. In some way, their influence has altered the teachers and head teachers’ comfort space, starting new discussions about methodological strategies and assessment systems.

The study, funded by MAPFRE’s Foundation and carried out in 2016, is based on the opinion of teachers from all around Spain, and has collected almost 1,300 questionnaires, 88 critical incidents interviews, 4 focus groups and 2 expert seminars. It’s been coordinated by Joaquín Gairín and Diego Castro, and the working team is completed with other UAB researchers like Cristina Mercader and Josep María Silva.

Overall, teachers’ opinions highlight the value of ICT as a motivational tool towards students, making them the main character of the learning process. Moreover, considering the impact inside the class, the study identifies a better climate and that ICT enhances the enrichment of assessment process, learning self-management and the consideration of the role of teachers as advisors, which develop a greater personalization.

ICT implies more planning and expansion of the abilities needed to tackle the escalation of the complexity in the teachers’ role. The ICT development has also enhanced a review of security and ethic protocols in using information, since it has generated new conflicts, which are personal problems that can deeply affect to students, as well as inadequate uses of infrastructures and devices.

The change of mentality and the new possibilities that ICT offers need an overhaul of preservice and continuous teacher training to serve new situations resulted from everyday life, as well as handle problems generated in social networks; and to take advantage from ICT possibilities.

With that in mind, one of the proposals drawn from this study is to enhance ICT implementation and development. In that sense, it is highly recommended promoting plans in each educational center to boost quality and continuous training processes, adapted to every pedagogical context. Additionally, educational centers are summoned to promote a better preparation of families before the current Knowledge Society and, because of that, it is essential the creation of collaborative processes that enable common projects. Some specific proposals are creating a network between centers to encourage peer-learning, promoting Communities of Professional Practice (CoP) and elaborating TKL plans (Technologies for Knowledge and Learning) in centers with their correspondent ICT coordinator, that bolster an effective implementation of these tools.

Joaquín Gairín Sallán; Cristina Mercader Juan
EDO Group (Organizational Development Team)
Department of Applied Pedagogy
Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona
cristina.mercader@uab.cat

References

Diego Castro, Joaquín Gairín, Cristina Mercader, Josep Maria Silva, Edgardo Astete.
L'impacte de les TIC a l'aula des de la perspectiva del professorat. Entitat finançadora: Fundació Mapfre 2016

 
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