Teachers Attitudes towards the use of Instructional Technologies in Kericho Teacher Training College, Kenya

CONTENTS

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

RESEARCH FINDINGS

CONCLUSIONS

RECOMMENDATIONS

RECOMMENDATIONS AREAS FOR FURTHER RESEARCH

REFERENCES

ABSTRACT

The use of instructional technologies by teachers has an impact on students’ content acquisition and adds to class performance. However, research has shown that it is not only the technology that is important, but also how it is used that improves learning and increases pupils’ interest. In view of this, since not much was known about the teacher’s attitude use of technologies in training colleges in Kenya, Therefore, this study was designed to establish teachers’ attitudes towards the use of instructional technologies in Kericho teacher training college Kenya. The technologies studied were chalkboards, flip charts, overhead projectors, videos, computers, and local resources from the environment. The design of the study was descriptive survey method involving both qualitative and quantitative research methodology. The target population for this study comprised of19 tutors. The study adopted questionnaire and Interview Guide. The researcher make used of stratified random, purposive sampling and simple random sampling. The reliability of instrument was tested using Cronbach Coefficient Alpha to determine the internal consistency of the items in the questionnaire. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze data from the Questionnaire. Data collected were analyzed and descriptively presented with frequencies and percentages, while tables were used to enhance vivid illustrations. The results of the study showed that respondents agreed on the importance of using the technologies. Despite the teaching materials helping to elaborate difficult concepts, the teachers agreed that producing them requires too much time, which to some extent threatens the availability of these self-produced teaching materials. On the other hand, the teachers were eager to learn how to use the higher-order technologies. This finding clearly shows that they need the training to be able to use the technologies. The study concludes with a suggested process for how government and the teacher training institutions can work collaboratively to maximize the use of instructional technologies in the teaching and learning process for prospective teachers. Several possibilities for further research on the use of instructional technologies have been highlighted.

INTRODUCTION

According to Tomei (2002), Instructional technology is “the application of educational technologies to the solution of specific instructional problems,” (p. 7) where educational technologies would mean, “the combination of instructional, developmental, managerial, and other technologies … applied specifically to the solution of educational problems” (p. 7). Stuart (1976) associates instructional technology with some type of equipment and specifies that, “Radio, television, films and computers are instructional technologies” (p. 6). Beggs (2000) further defined instructional technology as “the use of technology to achieve an instructional objective” (p. 2). In this study the term instructional technologies will be frequently used alongside instructional media and instructional materials to mean all the materials and equipment that are used to enhance the teaching and learning process. Since instructional technologies are many, this study will focus on the chalkboard, flip charts, overhead projectors, videos, computers, and use of local resources which means, teaching and learning using locally available resources.

These instructional materials were selected because they are available in the teacher training colleges in Kenya and are expected to be used frequently. It should be appreciated that unlike in developed countries, where instructional technology focuses more on the use of computer hardware and software for teaching and learning, in developing countries like Kenya, the chalkboard, flip charts, overhead projectors, videos, and local resources are the main technologies being used in the teacher training colleges. Computers are just beginning to appear in teacher training colleges. For tutors in the teacher training colleges to start using instructional technologies in their teaching, they need to appreciate how helpful the technologies are to themselves as well as to the students. This appreciation and the desire to start using the technologies demand a degree of change in teachers’ perceptions and attitudes towards use of technology.

It is, therefore, important to highlight how this change process can be effected. The notion of change implies doing something different from the way it was done previously, and this change should have a positive effect on the implementer himself or herself (Madison, 2003). Change affects the setting of the organization or the institution in its leadership, resources and culture. It also affects the attitudes, values and beliefs of the people who are the change agents (Hope, 1997). Weller (1996) viewed change as a process to transform people’s knowledge, attitudes, and behavior about the value of embracing something new or achieving something more beneficial. Unfortunately, when change is proposed, “there are forces which both support and resist [the] change” (Weller, 1996, p. 25). The advent of technology in education has been received with mixed feelings by teachers, some of whom are still comfortable with the old [traditional] ways of teaching, while to others technology is a challenge worth meeting head-on.

Furthermore if student teachers are to become confident and competent users of different technologies in their own classes, then they need to see their tutors using various technologies in their instruction. Otherwise, when student teachers go to their own schools, they may end up teaching “in the same way they were taught without using any instructional media” (Majed, 1996, p. 63). Kemp (2000) also supported the notion of tutors as role models: “In order for pre service teachers to demonstrate [technology] competencies, teacher education faculty must, themselves, model the use of technology in their own teaching” (p. 11). It would appear that it is easy for tutors to be in the “do as I say, and not as I do” mode, where they encourage their student teachers to use instructional technologies and yet they, those who are supposed to show the student teachers how to use such technologies, do not use them. Based on this background, the study sought to examine the teachers’ attitudes towards the use of instructional technologies in Kericho Teacher Training College Kenya.

STATEMENT OF THE PROBLEM

The use of instructional technologies in the classroom has the potential to help the teacher explain new concepts clearly, resulting in better student understanding of the concepts being taught. In a survey, to find factors that facilitate teacher skill, teacher morale, and perceived student learning in technology-using classrooms, Baylor and Ritchie (2002) found that teachers valued the use of technologies in class and that it had an impact on students’ content acquisition; the use of technology added to class performance.

However, availability of instructional materials does not automatically mean that learning will take place. In addition to availability, learning also depends on “the situation, the teacher, her/ (his) energy, her/ (his) imagination (and creativity), and those thirty or more unique personalities called a class” (Smith and Nagel, 1972, p. 5). Teacher initiative makes a difference. Beggs (2000) noted that, “Research has shown that it is not the technology itself but how the technology is used that improves learning and increases student interest” (p. 3 - 4). Thus technologies can be available, but if they are inappropriately used the students may not benefit from their use. Similarly the technologies can be available, but, if the tutors do not know how to use them, then learning that could have been enhanced by the use of the technologies will not occur. Tutors in the teacher training institutions need to be effective teachers and good role models for teaching practices. Moreover the tutors’ use of instructional technologies in their teaching is an essential component of a quality teacher education program. Tutors who use instructional technologies effectively will inevitably raise the quality of learning experience for that student teachers. In view of this discrepancy, there is need to examine the teachers’ attitudes towards the use of instructional technologies in Kericho Teacher Training College Kenya.

PURPOSE OF THE STUDY

The study focused on the teachers’ attitudes towards the use of instructional technologies in Kericho Teacher Training College, Kenya.

RESEARCH METHODOLOGY

The design of the study was descriptive survey method involving both qualitative and quantitative research methodology. The target population for this study comprised of tutors. The study adopted questionnaire. The researcher make used of stratified random, purposive sampling and simple random sampling. The reliability of instrument was tested using Cronbach Coefficient Alpha to determine the internal consistency of the items in the questionnaire. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to analyze data from the interviews, Questionnaire and classroom observation. Data collected were analyzed and descriptively presented with frequencies and percentages.

RESEARCH FINDINGS

This section presents the descriptive and inferential analysis of the data collected in the study, drawing together the perspectives of the different respondents. The study sought to establish teachers’ attitudes towards the use of instructional technologies in Kericho Teacher Training College Kenya.

[...]