Getting the information and communications technology formula right: access + ability = confident use

Abstract

The author reports on a study investigating the use of information and communications technology (ICT) by academic and nonacademic staff at an independent English secondary school. Three key areas were investigated: access to ICT both in and outside the school, the perceived and desired ICT ability of staff, and the issues preventing increased use of ICT in teaching, learning and administration. Results showed that a major challenge facing the school was not access to ICT resources, but the provision of relevant and supportive training for staff     

Students' information and communications technology skills and their use during teacher training

Abstract

Two surveys of the 1997–98 cohort of Postgraduate Certificate of Education students in the United Kingdom showed that students had a wide range of information and communications technology (ICT) skills at the start of their course; much of their experience had been gained during their undergraduate studies or at home. They also had considerable enthusiasm for learning more skills and using them in their future careers as teachers. However, as many other researchers have also found, students were not always able to transfer their skills to use in the classroom, although they very often used them in preparing both classroom materials and assessed coursework. Significant differences in ICT use were found between students studying different subjects; availability of ICT facilities in schools (varying between subjects) also affected use of ICT. The results are discussed in terms of attitudes to ICT in schools.     

Teachers' beliefs and integration of information and communications technology in Italian schools

Abstract

The goal of the present study was to examine teaching styles with information and communications technology (ICT); in Italian schools and in particular to explore whether there is a relationship between personal theories of teaching and learning, levels of competence in ICT, and how ICT is integrated into classroom activities. Teachers with high and low levels of competence in ICT were interviewed in order to examine their beliefs, perceptions, and experiences related to teaching with and without the computer. They were asked to reflect both on themselves as teachers and on their pupils. The results of this preliminary study appeared to indicate that both personal theories of teaching and the level of competence with ICT play a major role in how teachers implement ICT and in their perception of their own and their pupils' motivation     

Some effects of information and communications technology on teaching and learning in Iceland

Abstract

In this article the author describes the changing of traditional teaching patterns, how difficult and time-consuming such changing can be and how use of information and communications technology (ICT) may affect that change process. She gives an overview of some effects ICT appears to be having on teaching and learning in the Icelandic educational system. Teaching practices at the compulsory level of schooling in Iceland are described and indications presented on how little they appear to be changing. Effects on teaching practices in teacher education at Iceland University of Education are also discussed, with the trend towards distance education and net-based teaching and learning being by far the most noticeable     

Effective integration of information and communications technology in teacher education

Abstract

Effective delivery of the new information technology (IT) curriculum for student teachers in the United Kingdom, which started in September 1998, is an important challenge for initial teacher training institutions. This article identifies three main obstacles that may limit its successful implementation – student access to computers, the communications and information technology (ICT) policy adopted by initial teacher training providers and the lack of encouragement for students to use ICT on teaching practice. The work is based on a survey carried out in 1997 of lecturers and students in three teacher training institutions in Northern Ireland. The findings have led to the proposal of basic guidelines to contribute towards the development and implementation of an effective ICT policy in initial teacher training institutions.     

Team teach with a student: A pilot study in criminal justice

In this study, criminal justice classes were team taught by six pairs of one faculty member and one student teacher. The professor-student teaching teams met together before class to plan and after class to problem solve. The student teachers were charged with helping the professors introduce active learning exercises into their classes. This article reports on survey data from these professors, student teachers and the students they taught, including their views on both the benefits and problems. The article shows professors how to team teach with a student and helps professors who want to try the approach to anticipate and minimize the problems while capitalizing on the benefits.     

Methodological issues in identifying and describing the way knowledge is constructed with and without information and communications technology

Abstract

The methods a researcher uses to identify and describe any element of human activity are dependent upon epistemological and culturalpolitical factors. In order to contribute to the improvement of education, researchers who adopt sociocultural methods need to recognise that policy makers are an integral part of the cultural-historical context of education, and adopt a stance of interactive engagement with them. It is clear that the context of learning is critically important, and educational institutions are not normally good environments for learning. Participatory research methods are suggested as the most appropriate way of researching the hidden, private and personally unique process of knowledge construction. A range of methods for data collection and analysis are described, including the use of texts retrieved from electronic communications. Activity theory is suggested as a good framework for intervention studies to explore how the structures of educational institutions could be radically changed to enable information and communications technology (ICT) to transform learning. Such studies would involve researchers working cooperatively with teachers, pupils, parents, the local community, and local and national policy makers in schools where all teachers and students have access any time, any place to ICT. The process of change would be informed by parallel studies of self-directed learning in innovative web-based learning communities, which would be fed back to participants in intervention workshops.     

The emerging information and communications technology educational research forum

Abstract

In education, research presents a number of challenges. One of these is to ensure that educators are well placed to utilise the outcomes of research, and conversely that the profession is able to inform the research agenda. This is as true for the application of information and communications technology in education, as in any other field. At the same time, there is a growing perception that the education profession needs to become more ‘evidence based’ and draw on educational research and validated good practice. This applies to teachers in all phases of education, from the nursery school to the university, and to those who provide services to education and training and inform their strategic development. However, because teaching and learning take place in increasingly complex environments and across multiple organisations and systems, careful interpretations are required to put research into practice.     

A comparison of the influence of government policy on information and communications technology for teacher training in England and Northern Ireland

Abstract

This article examines the introduction of national standards and guidelines for the use of information and communications technology (ICT) in initial teacher training in England and Northern Ireland. The context for the increased focus on ICT in teacher education is described for each part of the United Kingdom (UK). Comparisons are drawn between the two areas of the UK to show how schools and teacher training institutions have attempted to meet the standards within each political context by examining the positive features of three case teacher training courses, two in England and one in Northern Ireland. From this, inferences are drawn about the level of intervention by Government and whether greater government control has reduced or increased the integration of ICT into the cycle of teaching and learning.     

A review of pedagogy related to information and communications technology

Abstract

This article reviews research on pedagogies associated with the use of information and communications technology (ICT) in primary and secondary schools. We propose a framework for examining pedagogical practices based on an analysis of the nature of pedagogy as revealed in the literature. In the light of this framework we discuss empirical evidence of the use of different types of ICT in different subjects and phases of education. We identify pedagogical issues associated with ICT use and their implications for teachers' pedagogical reasoning and practices. The evidence suggests that new affordances provided by ICT-based learning environments require teachers to undertake more complex pedagogical reasoning than before in their planning and teaching that incorporates knowledge of specific affordances and how these relate to their subject-based teaching objectives as well as the knowledge they have always needed to plan for their students' learning. In addition the research shows that teachers' beliefs about the value of ICT for learning and the nature of successful learning environments are important in teachers' pedagogical reasoning     

Towards a learning society in finland: information and communications technology in teacher education

Abstract

This article describes the recent development of Finland as a learning and information society. Education, training and research have been seen as core factors to accelerate development towards a society where all citizens have a high level of competence in using information and communications technology (ICT) in their lives. A short review is given of the present situation in schools and teacher education and of how governmental strategies have guided the development and use of ICT for a learning society in Finland. The strategies of teacher education departments in universities are then analysed with the main focus on how teachers learn to use ICT as a tool which opens up high-quality learning opportunities for pupils and challenges teachers' growth as professionals. Cases have been selected to describe good examples of teachers' pre-service and in-service education. These draw a picture of how ICT is applied in different fields of teacher education. At the end of the article some trends from the late 1990s to early 2002 will be summarised. These trends are: using ICT more as a mindtool, moving towards more collaboration, interactivity and active learning, more integration of ICT in curricula and a better technical and pedagogical infrastructure.     

Using affordances and constraints to evaluate the use of information and communications technology in teaching and learning

Abstract

Evaluating the nature and extent of the influence of information and communications technology (ICT) on the quality of learning is highly problematic, owing to the number and complexity of interacting variables involved in settings for teaching and learning. Yet, for those responsible for allocating large sums of money to the development of ICT in education, it is important to identify, characterise, measure and model more precisely the features and processes through which technology impacts upon teaching and learning activities. This article offers a framework for analysing the effects of ICT in combination with the other factors which may enhance or ameliorate the positive impact of ICT in the classroom and beyond. This framework is applicable to different levels of evaluation, including large scale curriculum development programmes, curriculum and pedagogical change in particular schools, and individual teachers' planning and reflection. Its use in evaluating new ICT-based teaching approaches at classroom level is illustrated and analysed in the context of an in-service teacher education programme in the United Kingdom, and suggestions are made concerning the development of evaluation tools based on the framework     

Ability tracking and social trust in China’s rural secondary school system

ABSTRACT

The goal of this paper is to describe and analyze the relationship between ability tracking and student social trust, in the context of low-income students in developing countries. Drawing on the results from a longitudinal study among 1,436 low-income students across 132 schools in rural China, we found a significant lack of interpersonal trust and confidence in public institutions among poor rural young adults. We also found that slow-tracked students have a significantly lower level of social trust, comprised of interpersonal trust and confidence in public institutions, relative to their fast-tracked peers. This disparity might further widen the gap between relatively privileged students who stay in school and less privileged students who drop out of school. These results suggest that making high school accessible to more students may improve social trust among rural low-income young adults.     

Communal constructivist theory: information and communications technology pedagogy and internationalisation of the curriculum

Abstract

This article explores communal constructivism as a unifying theory that encapsulates the ways in which information and communications technology (ICT) enables learners to collaboratively create knowledge. The authors review the research outcomes from several international ICT projects in the light of communal constructivist learning theory, which provides a rationale and explanations for some of their findings exploring the effectiveness of new pedagogical practices emerging in ICT-rich innovative learning environments. They argue that the term ‘communal constructivism’ conveys a meaning that captures specific elements of the additional value that various forms of ICT bring to learning environments, specifically the different forms of virtual and real community building, as well as the different ways in which knowledge is constructed, shared and reconstructed, published and republished by both teachers and learners alike. The aim of the article is to start the debate about communal constructivism as a unifying theory for aspects of ICT pedagogy, and to identify some of the characteristics of ICTrich learning environments where the authors suggest communal constructivist pedagogy is in operation.     

The state of affairs of teacher education with respect to information and communications technology

Abstract

If the Internet is an information superhighway, then teachers just might be the road-kill on the asphalt of the information superhighway. Possibly, for the first time in history, students are more adept at using the tools necessary for acquiring and transmitting knowledge than are their teachers. Children everywhere are creating their own virtual communities through the use of new technologies. They make use of chat facilities (MSN®, ICQ® etc.) to stay synchronously in touch with both old and new friends and email and short message services to stay in touch with them asynchronously. They take part in discussion groups, navigate through virtual worlds and assimilate new hardware and software as if it were second nature. In many ways they are light years ahead of their parents and teachers with respect to the possibilities of information and communications technology (ICT). As a result students are getting bored and frustrated and teachers are getting frustrated and distraught. To try to remedy this, the Inspectorate of Education of the Netherlands commissioned the Educational Technology Expertise Centre of the Open University of the Netherlands to lead an international study (quick-scan) on good/best practice with respect to the integration of ICT into the mental and physical toolbox of the aspirant teacher and to try to draw from this preliminary curricular benchmarks for teachers' colleges in the Netherlands. The quick-scan was carried out by a network of teacher training and ICT experts throughout the world. This special issue shows the reader the results of this quick-scan in terms of good practice and benchmarks for calibration and/or modelling of teacher training in ICT along with a number of pedagogical and policy repercussions of their adoption     

The foreign student as a student teacher

Cultural differences appeared to establish a communications barrier between this teacher and her student teacher. Perhaps Mrs. Bloom's experiences will be helpful to other supervisors who work with foreign student teachers.     

Using information and communications technology as a pedagogical tool: a survey of initial teacher education in Scotland

Abstract

In common with other parts of the United Kingdom, teacher education in Scotland is facing a period of rapidly changing demands with respect to the use of information and communications technology (ICT), together with high levels of investment, rising expectations, and increased scrutiny and accountability. In this article, we present an account of a national survey of the ICT skills and attitudes of students entering and exiting from the teacher education institutions in Scotland in the session 1996-97. The students are extremely positive in their attitudes, their enthusiasm for ICT use in education is high and their aspirations clear – they expect ICT to permeate their professional work now and in the future. Their experiences during their period of training fall considerably short of their expectations. We discuss the reasons for some of the difficulties and consider the challenges faced by tutors in initial teacher education courses who must now ‘model the message’ of a learner-centred approach to the education of their students.     

Beyond Diversity Courses: Strategies for Integrating Critical Consciousness Across Social Work Curriculum

ABSTRACT. This paper advances the knowledge base of social work education by employing a critical social work framework to inform teaching strategies that 1) raise critical consciousness, 2) uncover privileged positions that inform research, and 3) conceptualize social work practice that disrupts privilege and oppression. The premise of a need for such strategies arises from examination of the social work educational policies and standards that require attention to the experiences and conditions of marginalized populations. The conceptual and teaching approach described in this paper extends this standard via the examination of the privileged social identities and the ensuing behaviors that perpetuate oppressive practices and conditions among marginalized groups. A conceptual foundation for this approach is elucidated and teaching strategies for exploring privileged social locations are presented.     

Policy intervention and power shifts: an evaluation of South Africa's education restructuring policies

This paper argues that the South African educational restructuring policy proposals are unlikely to become interventions that help bringing about greater development, equity, participation and redress. The reasons for this are manifold. It is contended that the policy proposals are flawed in their conceptualization of the problems and misjudge the educational context and dynamics on the ground. These interventions favour the interests of the more organized and privileged sections of society and only indirectly address the needs of the excluded and disadvantaged. The policy proposals are also based on problematic assumptions about policy and the policy process, and the relationship between policy and practice. Finally, these proposals do not have an appropriate understanding of the change process and are unable to develop strategies to influence the reform process and empower the disadvantaged to struggle for a fairer, more equitable and effective education and training system.     

The indifference of distinction. Art schools and the noblesse oblige of privileged students

ABSTRACT

A consolidated sociological line of the research allows us to understand the educational advantages of middle-class pupils in terms of the dynamics of reproduction [Bourdieu, P., and J. C. Passeron. 1970. The Inheritors: French Students and Their Relations to Culture, translated and edited by Richard Nice. Chicago: University of Chicago Press; Power, S., T. Edwards, G. Whitty, and V. Wigfall. 2003. Education and the Middle Class. Buckingham: Open University Press]. However, some scholars have pointed out how this process cannot be taken for granted, highlighting the difficulties experienced by youths in reaching academic success [Reay, D., and H. Lucey. 2002. “Carrying the Beacon of Excellence: Social Class Differentiation and Anxiety at a Time of Transition.” Journal of Education Policy 17 (3): 321–336. Doi:10.1080/02680930210127586]. Based on Bourdieu’s perspective, this article will explore the links between low educational attainment, artistic passion, and high aspirations in privileged students. The research is based on in-depth interviews and focus groups with middle-class pupils in two secondary art schools in Milan. It is argued the artistic disposition acts within dynamics of negotiation among different and contrasting expectations. Creativity emerges as a source to perform gendered privileged learner identities. This study on artistic educational pathways can contribute to understanding the process-making of inequalities in creative fields.