Investigating the influences of teacher belief and contextual factors on the technology integration of Taiwanese high school teachers
Year: 2006
Type: dissertation
Abstract: The purposes of this study were to illustrate the technology integration of \nTaiwanese high school teachers, to explore the influence of the teachers’ pedagogical \nbeliefs and beliefs about the potential of technology for their technology integration, and \nto investigate how contextual factors affect teacher belief and practice related to \ntechnology usage. Twelve Taiwanese high school teachers were recruited to participate in \nthis project. With the interpretivist paradigm and qualitative case study methods, data \nwere collected from classroom observation, interviews, and reviews of documents. The \nfindings of this study can inform researchers and practitioners about how to improve the \ntechnology integration of Taiwanese high school teachers, and the findings can also \nprovide different perspectives on the implementation of an educational innovation at \ndifferent grade levels and at different educational systems. \nThe study found that teachers’ pedagogical beliefs and beliefs about technology \nintegration were not primary factors influencing technology integration. Instead, \ncomparative analysis indicates primary mitigating factors were teachers’ concerns \nregarding obstacles to technology usage in classroom. Nevertheless, teachers’ \npedagogical beliefs and beliefs about how technology could help them achieve their \ninstructional goals did affect their perception and practice of technology integration. \nTeachers with more constructivist beliefs made efforts to allocate time for students to \nengage in problem- or project-based learning occasionally. Some of them used online \ndiscussion or presentation software to anchor and encourage discussion and interaction \namong teachers and students. Teachers who prioritized examination preparation mostly \nused technology to cover content, sometimes discarding technology when they \nconsidered technology not cost-effective or a distraction for student learning. \nThe analysis of the influences of context factors on technology integration \nfocused on the context of Taiwanese high schools. The College Joint Entrance \nExamination, the mandatory curriculum standards, adopted textbooks, and inflexible \nassessment methods allowed teachers limited time and freedom to integrate technology \nwith creative instruction design. The available equipment and support from others could \nbe another issue, and the attitudes of other stakeholders could give teachers either \npressure or support. Finally, school culture as well as issues of racial, social, and culture \ndifference should be considered while promoting technology integration.
Author: Chao‐Hsiu Chen
Institution: The University of Texas at Austin
Language: English
Subfield: Education
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
SDG: Quality education
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W1823263715