In her 2008 article, A Study of Teacher Perceptions of Instructional Technology Integration in the Classroom, Lynette Molstad Gorder examined the degree to which teachers perceived they integrated technology into their classrooms. Gorder surveyed K-12 teachers who had received advanced training in technology integration at the Technology for Teaching and Learning Academies in South Dakota. Of the 300 teachers invited to participate in the survey, 174 replied. Gorder analyzed the data she received according to the gender, age, teaching experience, grade level taught, content area taught, and educational level of said teachers.
Gorder divided her survey into three phases of technology integration. Phase one measures a teacher’s perceived use of technology for his or her professional productivity. This includes activities such as using technology to manage files, communicate, and locate educational resources. Phase two measures a teacher’s perceived use of technology to facilitate and deliver instruction. This includes such activities such as managing student learning activities and demonstrating strategies to assess the validity and reliability of information gathered with technology. Phase three measured a teacher’s perceived use of technology for integration into teaching and student learning. This phase includes activities like using technology with students to solve authentic problems and engaging learners in the development of electronic portfolios.
Based upon the responses she received, Gorder found little difference in perceived integration of technology based upon the aforementioned demographics and personal attributes. The only difference worth noting is that High School teachers tend to integrate and use technology more often that Middle School or Elementary School teachers. Gorder’s research does indicate that, overall, teachers are more comfortable in the first two phases of technology use (for professional productivity as well as to facilitate and deliver instruction) than they are with the third phase (integration into teaching and student learning). She recommends that teachers seek further opportunities for professional development to enhance the ways they integrate technology into their classrooms as well as collaborate with their colleagues to share ideas and strategies for better utilizing technology. Administrators also can help by providing teachers with more time and resources to enhance their knowledge and skill levels as they pertain to technology integration.
This study both surprised me and reinforced what I had already thought. I was surprised to learn that age, in particular, was not a factor when determining a teacher’s perceived use and integration of technology in the classroom. The 60 year-olds were on par with the 25 year-olds. Prior to reading this study, I assumed that digital natives would have a much higher percentage of utilization and integration in their classrooms than digital immigrants. I was wrong.
The study did reinforce what I thought would be true of most teachers. They are more comfortable using the technology for professional productivity and delivering instruction than they are integrating that technology into their teaching and their students’ learning. Teachers know how to use their technological tools in the classroom but they don’t always know why they are using them. The why question is essential and one teachers must learn to address when engaging their students in the classroom.
Gorder, Lynette Molstad. Delta Pi Epsilon Journal, v50 n2 p63-76 Spr-Sum 2008. 14 pp.
http://web.ebscohost.com.ezproxy.snhu.edu/ehost/pdfviewer/pdfviewer?hid=14&sid=84215260-37fa-4c92-9cb0-d8b23ebe5ace%40sessionmgr14&vid=6
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