Teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and their use of digital media in classrooms: Sharpening the focus of the ‘will, skill, tool’ model and integrating teachers’ constructivist orientations

The ‘will, skill, tool’ model is a well-established theoretical framework that elucidates the conditions under which teachers are most likely to employ information and communication technologies (ICT) in the classroom. Past studies have shown that these three factors explain a very high degree of variance in the frequency of classroom ICT use. The present study replicates past findings using a different set of measures and hones in on possible subfactors. Furthermore, the study examines teacher affiliation for constructivist-style teaching, which is often considered to facilitate the pedagogical use of digital media. The study’s survey of 357 Swiss secondary school teachers reveals significant positive correlations between will, skill, and tool variables and the combined frequency and diversity of technology use in teaching. A multiple linear regression model was used to identify relevant subfactors. Five factors account for a total of 60% of the explained variance in the intensity of classroom ICT use. Computer and Internet applications are more often used by teachers in the classroom when: (1) teachers consider themselves to be more competent in using ICT for teaching; (2) more computers are readily available; (3) the teacher is a form teacher and responsible for the class; (4) the teacher is more convinced that computers improve student learning; and (5) the teacher more often employs constructivist forms of teaching and learning. The impact of constructivist teaching was small, however.     

Using ubiquitous games in an English listening and speaking course: Impact on learning outcomes and motivation

This paper reports the results of a study which aimed to investigate how ubiquitous games influence English learning achievement and motivation through a context-aware ubiquitous learning environment. An English curriculum was conducted on a school campus by using a context-aware ubiquitous learning environment called the Handheld English Language Learning Organization (HELLO). HELLO helps students to engage in learning activities based on the ARCS motivation theory, involving various educational strategies, including ubiquitous game-based learning, collaborative learning, and context-aware learning. Two groups of students participated in the learning activities prescribed in a curriculum by separately using ubiquitous game-based learning and non-gaming learning. The curriculum, entitled ‘My Campus’, included three learning activities, namely ‘Campus Environment’, ‘Campus Life’ and ‘Campus Story’. Participants included high school teachers and juniors. During the experiment, tests, a survey, and interviews were conducted for the students. The evaluation results of the learning outcomes and learning motivation demonstrated that incorporating ubiquitous games into the English learning process could achieve a better learning outcomes and motivation than using non-gaming method. They further revealed a positive relationship between learning outcomes and motivation.     

How students structure and relate argumentative knowledge when learning together with diagrams

When students learn together by discussing a topic, they sometimes are asked to construct an argumentative diagram. An argumentative diagram consists of boxes with arguments and arrows that relate these boxes. Constructing argumentative diagrams can be especially useful for structuring and relating argumentative knowledge. However, students do not always seem to use a diagram’s structure and relations to their benefit. To focus on structure and relations, 46 secondary school students were asked to either label the boxes in a diagram with argumentative labels such as ‘argument in favor’ and ‘rebuttal’, or to label the arrows with more causal labels such as ‘but’, and ‘because’. The students discussed two topics in dyads using a computer environment with chat and diagram. Then a post-test was given to assess their opinion and arguments. We found no difference between conditions in the extent to which students broadened and deepened their discussion. However, students who labeled the arrows contrasted subtopics more. The students who contrasted subtopics more showed better results on the post-test. Instruction and diagram design can thus influence students’ discussion, although the general results also show us that students need more instruction and reflection to optimally benefit from argumentative diagrams.     

Teachers' acceptance and use of an educational portal

In this study, teachers' acceptance and use of an educational portal is assessed based on data from two sources: usage data (number of logins, downloads, uploads, reactions and pages viewed) and an online acceptance questionnaire. The usage data is extracted on two occasions from the portal's database: at survey completion (T1) and twenty-two months later (T2). Framework for this study is C-TAM-TPB (Combined Technology Acceptance Model and Theory of Planned Behavior). 919 usable responses from teachers are obtained. Based on the observed use data at T1, four types of portal users are distinguished: ‘new’ (N = 37), ‘light’ (N = 641), ‘medium’ (N = 201), and ‘heavy’ (N = 40). Path analyses show that all predictor variables in C-TAM-TPB influence teachers' portal acceptance, but their significance level varies depending on the user type. The strongest predictors of behavioral intention to use the portal are attitude (‘new’) and perceived usefulness (‘light’, ‘medium’ and ‘heavy’), with variance explained ranging from .39 (‘medium’) to .71 (‘heavy’). The observed use data show that the portal is primarily used to search for and download material, rather than for sharing material or information. The use data at T2 show that teachers become more efficient in their search behavior and that the majority of the teachers use the portal more frequently. Guidelines are proposed to policymakers and school boards aiming to introduce a similar technology to teachers.     

Developing Web literacy in collaborative inquiry activities

Although many children are technically skilled in using the Web, their competences to use it in a critical and meaningful way are usually less well developed. In this article, we report on a multiple case study focusing on the possibilities and limitations of collaborative inquiry activities as an appropriate context to acquire Web literacy skills in primary education. Four 5th grade school teachers and their students worked with collaborative inquiry activities on the subject of ‘healthy food’. The project was aimed at both the development of Web literacy skills and content knowledge building. Data from a variety of sources were collected: videotaped and written lesson observations, interviews with teachers and students, teacher diaries, student questionnaires, and student assignments. The teachers appeared to be able to carry out the program to varying degrees. Contextual factors that influenced the realization of the project’s goals and results were the adequacy of the research questions formulated by students, students’ inquiry skills, and the teachers’ teaching styles. Students’ learning results show that it is possible to teach Web literacy skills in the context of collaborative inquiry activities. All classes show knowledge gain with regard to the subject healthy food and all classes but one show knowledge gain with regard to Web literacy skills. Although many students show adequate use of particular Web searching, reading and evaluating skills after the project, inconsistency, impulsiveness and impatience are also typical of their Web behaviour. In the context of collaborative inquiry activities teachers are challenged to deal with the paradox that they want their students to be active knowledge builders with help of the Web, whereas the Web seems to invite students to be more or less passive searchers.     

Causal attributions of success and failure made by undergraduate students in an introductory-level computer programming course

The purpose of this research is to identify the causal attributions of business computing students in an introductory computer programming course, in the computer science department at Notre Dame University, Louaize. Forty-five male and female undergraduates who completed the computer programming course that extended for a 13-week semester participated. Narrative interviews were conducted to obtain their perceptions. While some research confirmed that the four most responsible causes for success and failure in achievement contexts are ability, effort, task difficulty, and luck, this research shows that in its context ‘ability’ and ‘luck’ were absent, and ‘task difficulty’ and ‘effort’ were almost absent. In all, participants made 10 causal attributions that were either cultural or specific to computer programming. The 10 causal attributions are ‘learning strategy’, ‘lack of study’, ‘lack of practice’, ‘subject difficulty’, ‘lack of effort’, ‘appropriate teaching method’, ‘exam anxiety’, ‘cheating’, ‘lack of time’, and ‘unfair treatment’. All high achievers cited appropriate ‘learning strategy’.     

Studying teacher selection of resources in an ultra-large scale interactive system: Does metadata guide the way?

Ultra-large-scale interactive systems on the Internet have begun to change how teachers prepare for instruction, particularly in regards to resource selection. Consequently, it is important to look at how teachers are currently selecting resources beyond content or keyword search. We conducted a two-part observational study of an existing popular system called TeachersPayTeachers hypothesizing that ‘evaluative metadata’ (i.e. comments, ratings, and popularity measures) would drive selection of resources. The first part examined patterns in tens of thousands of sales overall, and the second part focused on patterns of sales in one focal topic that could be expert coded. We find that there are significant gaps in available metadata, that some aspects of metadata are closely associated with sales, and that metadata are weak correlates of expert-determined quality. We conclude by making suggestions for additional research and suggesting how ultra-large scale-interactive systems such as TeachersPayTeachers could be used to improve teacher education.     

Patterns of email use by teachers and implications: A Singapore experience

This paper attempts to identify the patterns of email use by schoolteachers. The findings are based on a survey of 2998 Singapore teachers whose teaching experiences ranged from 24 to 48 months. The result shows that teachers use email mainly to communicate with colleagues, and the degree of email use varies according to the school level that the teachers are working in. While the teachers teaching at higher school levels (Grades 11–12) email their colleagues more frequently than their counterparts teaching at lower school levels especially primary school teachers, the latter tend to email parents more frequently than other teachers. Implications of the findings are discussed in relevance to pre-service teacher education, teacher professional development and ICT adoption in organisations.     

Discussing teaching videocases online: Perspectives of preservice and inservice EFL teachers in Taiwan

This study investigated the application of an online videocase discussion community into fostering preservice and inservice EFL (English as a foreign language) teachers’ professional development in Taiwan. This investigation further revealed the nature and development of discussion discourse and the participating teachers’ perceptions of this online learning experience. Also included were potential concerns or difficulties encountered by these community members. There were 21 preservice teachers, 7 secondary school teachers, and 4 university teachers involved in this study. Multiple data collection methods included teaching videos, online discussion messages, interviews, reflection journals, and an open-ended questionnaire. The findings showed that the preservice and inservice teachers appeared to respectively play different roles in discussing teaching videocases online. Yet, what they noticed in the teaching events shifted from diverse to similar focuses after engaging in online videocase discussion for almost one year. These teachers further perceived professional learning opportunities in this community, albeit several issues might hinder some of them from joining the discussion frequently. Pedagogical implications and research suggestions are offered for teacher educators and researchers to further codify and document teacher professional development in various online videocase discussion contexts.     

School knowledge management framework and strategies: The new perspective on teacher professional development

During the epoch of knowledge-based economy and knowledge management, teachers must learn in order to improve professional development. The paper discusses on the problems of teacher professional development in China, and analyze on the relationship among teacher learning, teacher professional development and school knowledge management. From the perspective of schools, this study develops school knowledge management framework to facilitate teacher learning and improve teacher professional development, in the basis of this framework, schools’ knowledge management strategies are presented, and provide references for administrators of schools. The result reveals the knowledge management strategies to improve teacher professional development, including school organizational reforger and knowledge leaders, constructing learning school and organization learning culture, establishing teacher knowledge management system of teacher professional development, encouraging team learning, teaching cooperation and knowledge sharing, establishing performance assessment mechanism of knowledge applications and development.     

Students' perceptions of ICT-related support in teaching placements

Abstract Recent research has shown that students' use of information and communications technology (ICT) on teaching practice is necessary for effective future use of ICT in the classroom. However, this paper reports that there are a number of factors affecting the use of ICT by student-teachers in their school placements. All 110 student-teachers attending one university's eight Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) courses completed a questionnaire on their attitudes to ICT in learning and teaching and their initial experiences of the application of ICT in schools. In-depth interviews with the student-teachers, as well as univer-sity tutors and teachers, revealed a range of issues that reflected how student-teachers perceive their school-based ICT training and what they think could improve their experiences. Recommendations are offered for the improvement of the ICT school experiences for student-teachers until teacher training is completed and improved ICT infrastructure is in place in schools. The overriding conclusion is that schools must be supported and resourced properly, and teachers must have effective ICT training, before improvements in school-based ICT development for student-teachers can be achieved.     

Strategies of parental regulation in the media-rich home

This paper investigates practices of domestic regulation of media within the family, focusing on parental attempts to manage children’s access to and use of new media. Theoretically, the paper seeks to integrate the specific literature on domestic rules and regulation of media use with the broader literature on the rules and roles in social situations, arguing that parental strategies in relation to domestic media reveal both the enactment of and the negotiations over the typically informal and implicit rules and roles in family life. These issues are explored using data from two surveys: (1) the ‘Young People, New Media’ project surveyed 1300 children and their parents, examining the social, relational and contextual factors that shape the ways in which families develop rules for managing the introduction of the personal computer and the multiplication of television sets, among other new media changes, in the home; (2) the ‘UK Children Go Online’ project surveyed 1500 children and their parents, updating the picture by examining the introduction of the Internet into the family home. On the basis of these data, it is argued that despite the ‘newness’ of media as they successively arrive in the home, there are considerable consistencies over time in the responses of families, it being the slow-to-change relations between parents and children that shape patterns of domestic regulation and use.     

Preparation versus practice: How do teacher education programs and practicing teachers align in their use of technology to support teaching and learning?

Researchers have called for renewed efforts in exploring both what knowledge should be taught in preservice teacher education programs with regard to technology, and how to best prepare teachers to effectively use that knowledge to support teaching and learning. This study compared the importance of technology topics from teacher educators and teachers’ perspectives. A two-phase mixed-methods research design utilized surveys and multiple case studies (interviews, documents) to collect data from both teacher educators and practicing teachers. Findings indicate that teachers and teacher educators demonstrated similarities in their views regarding the use of technology for personal productivity, information presentation, and the access and use of electronic resources to support teaching and learning. Teacher educators and teachers differed with regard to their use of technology for communication, analysis of student data, documenting professional growth, and facilitating higher-order thinking skills. Recommendations for how teacher education programs can incorporate and address technology topics in order to increase relevance for teachers are discussed.     

E-Science in the classroom – Towards viability

E-Science has the potential to transform school science by enabling learners, teachers and research scientists to engage together in authentic scientific enquiry, collaboration and learning. However, if we are to reap the benefits of this potential as part of everyday teaching and learning, we need to explicitly think about and support the work required to set up and run e-Science experiences within any particular educational context. In this paper, we present a framework for identifying and describing the resources, tools and services necessary to move e-Science into the classroom together with examples of these. This framework is derived from previous experiences conducting educational e-Science projects and systematic analysis of the categories of ‘hidden work’ needed to run these projects. The articulation of resources, tools and services based on these categories provides a starting point for more methodical design and deployment of future educational e-Science projects, reflection on which can also help further develop the framework. It also points to the technological infrastructure from which such tools and services could be built. As such it provides an agenda of work to develop both processes and technologies that would make it practical for teachers to deliver active, and collaborative e-Science learning experiences on a larger scale within and across schools. Routine school e-Science will only be possible if such support is specified, implemented and made available to teachers within their work contexts in an appropriate and usable form.     

Developing situated knowledge about teaching with technology via Web-enhanced Case-based activity

Situated, case-based approaches, featuring virtual teachers’ activity and reasoning in university classrooms, may provide a viable alternative to immersive field-based apprenticeships. Despite widespread advocacy on situated teacher education, research on preservice teachers’ situated learning remains rare. This study examined how preservice teachers gain situated knowledge about teaching with technology by engaging the experiences of practicing teachers through Web-enhanced, Case-based activity (CBA). Situated knowledge of exemplary teachers often espouses a constructivist epistemology and a student-centered pedagogy when they use computers for teaching. Also, their knowledge for teaching with technology requires linking computer skills with associated curriculum and pedagogical strategies. Based on this initial framework, in this study, preservice teachers’ changes in perceptions and understanding about teaching with technology were documented over the course of a semester. A qualitative case study was used, and constant comparative methods were used to continually compare emerging themes and refine categories. Web-enhanced CBA helped most preservice teachers to both understand appropriate uses of technology and refined their perspectives by using experienced teachers’ captured knowledge and practices. Research is needed to refine our understanding of situated case-based approaches’ potential to promote both meaningful technology integration knowledge and skill and to address a range of everyday classroom teaching and learning issues, decisions, and practices.     

Boys’ and girls’ ICT beliefs: Do teachers matter?

This exploratory study took place in the context of middle school information science in Greece, to examine possible relations between boys’ and girls’: value and efficacy beliefs about computers and information science; perceived parental support; perceived teacher expectations; and perceptions of the nature of information science instruction. The participants of the study were 301 (135 male and 166 female) students who responded to a self-report questionnaire. Regression analysis showed that perceived teacher expectations were positively associated with students’ ability beliefs, perceptions of learning activities as creative and personally meaningful was a significant predictor of students’ interest in computing, and perceived parental support was related to both value and efficacy beliefs. Unlike previous research, the findings of this study did not support the conclusion that boys have more positive ICT self-efficacy and value beliefs than girls. They indicated however, that boys’ and girls’ beliefs are differentially affected by parents, teachers, and school IS instruction.     

Efficacy of a planned behavior model: Beliefs that contribute to computer usage intentions of student teachers and experienced teachers

The primary purpose of this study was to examine beliefs contributing to student teachers’ and experienced teachers’ intentions to use computer applications in their curricula. The secondary purpose was to investigate the efficacy of the decomposed theory of planned behavior for predicting such intentions. A purposeful sample of 19 teachers participated in semi-structured interviews. Results showed that both student and experienced teachers were motivated to use computers to prepare students for real world experiences. Although both groups reported high computer confidence, they expressed limitations in their usage. Student teachers focused on use of the Internet and not on using a variety of computer applications as tools for teaching and learning. Experienced teachers depended on both equipment resources and personal support from school administrators to successfully integrate technology into their classroom. Both teacher groups expressed the need for more computer-integrated training. This research provided support for using the decomposed theory of planned behavior to predict computer intentions and usage for teachers. Assessment of computer usage within any profession should be based upon a behavior model that complements the profession’s cultural environment.     

Applying social bookmarking to collective information searching (CIS): An analysis of behavioral pattern and peer interaction for co-exploring quality online resources

With the advancement of Web 2.0 applications, this study aims to advocate that social bookmarking (SB) applications could support mutual exchange of finding information in a manner of collective information searching (CIS). A social bookmarking system, namely ‘WeShare,’ was developed, and conducted with 127 junior high school students for performing the given assignment in this study. The participants’ activities of collecting and reviewing relevant information were traced by log data for later analysis. To initially unveil the participants’ behaviors in the use of social bookmarking for co-exploring the Internet resources, this study proposed some quantitative indicators to represent students’ personal contributions (‘Bookmarks from the Internet,’ ‘Bookmarks from WeShare,’ ‘Annotations on personal bookmarks,’ ‘Comments on others’ bookmarks’) and peer feedback (‘The number of bookmarks collected by peers,’ ‘The number of bookmarks commented on by peers,’ ‘The number of comments from peers’). By the method of cluster analysis, some behavioral patterns regarding how participants collectively search the Internet by use of WeShare were identified. Furthermore, the findings suggest that personal contributions to citing and commenting on peers’ bookmarks are important to the advancement of collective information searching activities for finding quality information on the Internet.     

Visualizing disaster attitudes resulting from terrorist activities

The purpose of this study was to analyze people’s attitudes to disasters by investigating how people feel, behave and think during disasters. We focused on disasters induced by humans, such as terrorist attacks. Two types of textual information were collected – from Internet blogs and from research papers. The analysis enabled forecasting of attitudes for the design of proactive disaster advisory scheme. Text was analyzed using a text mining tool, Leximancer. The outcome of this analysis revealed core themes and concepts in the text concerning people’s attitudes. The themes and concepts were sorted into three broad categories: Affect, Behaviour, and Cognition (ABC), and the data was visualized in semantic maps. The maps reveal several knowledge pathways of ABC for developing attitudinal ontologies, which describe the relations between affect, behaviour and cognition, and the sequence in which they develop. Clearly, terrorist attacks induced trauma and people became highly vulnerable.     

Facework on Facebook as a new literacy practice

This paper focuses on 25 UK teenagers’ language and literacy practices on Facebook; it draws on data from interviews as well as from Facebook ‘walls’. To explore whether Facebook provides opportunities for new literacy practices through text-making, the research considers how teenagers use the site to present themselves and ‘do friendship’. Continuities of the teenagers’ interactions were traced across the domains of school, home and Facebook and were found to reflect both ‘traditional’ and new ways of self presenting and of ‘doing friendship’.