Embed Size (px)
Citation preview
This article was downloaded by: [Clarkson University]On: 10 November 2014, At: 14:49Publisher: RoutledgeInforma Ltd Registered in England and Wales Registered Number: 1072954 Registered office: MortimerHouse, 37-41 Mortimer Street, London W1T 3JH, UK
Journal of Information Technology for TeacherEducationPublication details, including instructions for authors and subscription information:http://www.tandfonline.com/loi/rtpe19
Teachers' beliefs and integration of information andcommunications technology in Italian schoolsCamilla Gobbo a & Marta Girardi aa University of Padua , ItalyPublished online: 20 Dec 2006.
To cite this article: Camilla Gobbo & Marta Girardi (2001) Teachers' beliefs and integration of information andcommunications technology in Italian schools, Journal of Information Technology for Teacher Education, 10:1-2, 63-85,DOI: 10.1080/14759390100200103
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/14759390100200103
PLEASE SCROLL DOWN FOR ARTICLE
Taylor & Francis makes every effort to ensure the accuracy of all the information (the “Content”) containedin the publications on our platform. However, Taylor & Francis, our agents, and our licensors make norepresentations or warranties whatsoever as to the accuracy, completeness, or suitability for any purpose ofthe Content. Any opinions and views expressed in this publication are the opinions and views of the authors,and are not the views of or endorsed by Taylor & Francis. The accuracy of the Content should not be reliedupon and should be independently verified with primary sources of information. Taylor and Francis shallnot be liable for any losses, actions, claims, proceedings, demands, costs, expenses, damages, and otherliabilities whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with, in relation to orarising out of the use of the Content.
This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematicreproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in anyform to anyone is expressly forbidden. Terms & Conditions of access and use can be found at http://www.tandfonline.com/page/terms-and-conditions
Journal of Information Technology for Teacher Education, Vol. 10, Nos 1&2, 2001
63
Teachers’ Beliefs and Integration of Information and Communications Technology in Italian Schools
CAMILLA GOBBO & MARTA GIRARDI University of Padua, Italy
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.
Introduction
The introduction of information and communications technology (ICT) in the school environment has been fostered in many countries in recent years as it was assumed to offer a wide spectrum of valuable benefits for teaching and learning. However, although the availability of ICT use in schools has increased, there have also been some disappointments, as all the gains that were envisaged were not always achieved. One reason could be related to the initially excessive optimism that the introduction of ICT, as a ‘deus ex machina’, would result in an overall improvement in education. Thus, the need to find out why and in which circumstances ICT works as a good tool for teaching and learning has prompted a number of theoretical and empirical studies to identify relevant factors that could influence the efficacy of ICT utilization in schools.
In the present article this issue was addressed by looking at teaching styles associated with ICT use in the school context, on the assumption that
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
64
it is not ICT use per se that improves school education but what kind of use, what it is used for, and how it is utilized, including procedural aspects like time and space in the school context and other matters relating to classroom management.
Teaching style is a rather complex, ill-defined concept. Any teacher could differ from other teachers in a number of dimensions and the so-called typical behaviours are, in reality, much diversified. The concept of teaching style would be operationally utilized to include both teachers’ personal theories (or teaching model) and the perception of their practice. There are indications that as teachers become more experienced, they change their teaching, due to a deeper understanding of teaching and learning processes, to greater pedagogical, domain, and professional knowledge, and to their own evolving ideas about teaching and learning (e.g. Yinger & Hendricks-Lee, 1993). It has also been suggested that technology impacts on cognition since our mind is modelled on the tools which represent the world (Norman, 1988); thus, implementation of ICT seems to involve a series of changes and requires adaptation from teachers as well as students and schools (see Schofield, 1995). Furthermore, in line with Brown’s (1994) suggestion: ‘To design instruction, we need appropriate theories of learning and development’ (p. 4), the construction of ICT tools for teaching purposes has developed and evolved according to changes relating to perspectives on teaching and learning theories.
Thus, given the complexity of the interactive factors highlighted by these researchers, the aims of the present study were to examine teaching styles and look further at the relationship between personal theories of teaching and learning, competence in ICT and the integration of ICT in schools. On the one hand, changes in classroom dynamics and a move toward collaborative learning are often attributed to ICT, or more specifically, to some uses of it. On the other hand, some studies in which the concept of knowledge and some aspects of teachers’ behaviours were considered showed how practice could be driven by the teachers’ personal theories. Would practice be not only theory-driven but also tool-driven? Does the level of competence with ICT use play a role in teachers’ perception of their ICT practice? In other words, would teachers integrate ICT in a way congruent with their personal theory, or would they be prompted to reconsider their classroom practice through the use of the computer?
Brief Overview of Personal Theories of Teaching and Learning
Teaching style appears to encompass several dimensions. Its meaning could be viewed as based on epistemological beliefs or personal theories held by individual teachers and shared with a social environment (Fox, 1983). Theories and beliefs are concerned with the nature of knowledge, the relationship between knowledge and educational practice, and involve
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
65
images of teaching and professional practice, assumptions about teachers’ education, ideas about learning, pupils’ development and the teacher’s role in educational change (see Cochran-Smith & Lytle, 1995; Zambelli & Cherubini, 1999).
Personal theories have undergone different categorizations, depending on the type of dimensions being considered, starting from the conceptualisation offered by Fox (1983). Although some dimensions might be better conceptualised as a continuum rather than as a dichotomy, it could be useful to think about teachers’ personal theories, grouping them under just a few categories, even if any subsequent categorization would reflect extreme cases, overlooking subtle individual differences. In particular, Maor & Taylor (1995) found that how teachers used educational software in their classroom varied according to their epistemological orientation. They identified three orientations: trasmissionist orientation, individual constructivism and social constructivist orientation. Although these categories are rather broad, similar descriptions and interpretations can be recognized in a number of studies relating to conceptualisation of teaching and learning (e.g. Alexander et al, 1998; Berry & Sahlberg, 1996; Jehng et al, 1993; Marton et al, 1993; Tynjälä, 1997; Yinger & Hendricks-Lee, 1993). For the purpose of this study, the three categories of Maor & Taylor have been utilized.
In short, a transmissionist orientation involves a mechanistic view in which learning is considered as passive and quantitative. Knowledge is static and objective, produced by scientists and scholars, deposited in books, learned and then transmitted by the teachers. The pupils are viewed as containers to be filled or shaped (Fox, 1983). It is a teacher-centred pedagogy and traditional teaching methods allow scarce occasions for creative investigations, since the learning environment is under the strict control of the teacher. Thus, computer uses in school generally involve step-by-step instructions to learn new material and drill-and-practice exercises.
A shift in perspective is marked by the constructivist approach. As Schoenfeld (1999) put it, to answer questions like ‘How do teachers manage to do what they do “on line” in the classroom?’, the research should focus not only on competence but also ‘on human decision making in complex, dynamic social settings’ (p. 6). Interactionist and constructivist orientations are more student centred and good learning relies on self-regulation skills and takes place in an intentional environment. Within the constructivist approach, two main perspectives are identified.
According to personal constructivist approaches, the learners’ prior knowledge and experience give meaning to new information. By this process students individually construct their knowledge, using strategies and critically reflecting on their perspectives. Teachers provide explanations and link generalizations to empirical supporting evidence which allows students to pose creative questions leading into a context of discovery (see Bigge & Shermis, 1999). Within this approach, Papert’s Logo and Microworld
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
66
programs are among the appropriate computer uses: they involve pupils’ creativity and abilities to build their own programs and they foster pupils’ independent learning and knowledge construction.
Social constructivism, drawing from Vygotsky’s (1978) and Bruner’s (1990) ideas, views learning as socially constructed through discussions and negotiations of meanings (e.g. Cesareni, 1999; Edwards & Mercer, 1987; Mantovani, 1995; Talamo et al, 2000). Knowledge is distributed among interacting peers and teachers, and situated in the very context in which it is constructed. Individual constructions derive from a reorganization of one’s own ideas as a product of self-mediation and mediation in a social setting (Solomon, 1987; Salomon & Perkins, 1998). These processes are heavily supported by language (Maor & Taylor, 1995; Tobin et al, 1990) and enhance awareness of one’s own and others’ thinking. In a community of learners, through reciprocal teaching and cognitive apprenticeship (Brown & Campione, 1990), pupils become more and more responsible for their learning, working with peers and guided by the teacher coaching and scaffolding. Thus, the process of learning can be seen as a ‘guided discovery’ or as ‘exploratory understanding’ (Bigge & Shermis, 1999; Brown & Campione, 1994). Teachers engage in on-line diagnoses of students’ understanding, to decide when to intervene and alternate their role of guide with pupils’ independent work. The computer use could involve, for example, reading and constructing hypertexts (e.g. Varisco, 1995) which could enhance learning through collaborative work, where different abilities converge.
In the present study, the question of teaching style with ICT was addressed through interviews in which Italian teachers were asked to talk about their experience and ideas about the teaching – learning relationship, with a special focus on classroom practice. One peculiar source of variability in Italy could be the type of in-service training received by teachers, given that it could differ from school to school. Since the introduction of a university degree in teacher education started only recently (see Varisco & Gobbo, 2000), training in ICT had previously been provided to in-service teachers through courses organised by the school. Thus, teachers from different schools have had varying opportunities concerning the number, type and length of courses they could attend. This peculiar situation appeared to provide a good opportunity to study the relationship between teaching styles and teachers’ level of competence with ICT. For this purpose, teachers were divided into two groups, which differed with respect to the level of ICT training.
In summary, the main goals of the study were (a) to derive teachers’ personal theories, utilizing the categorization discussed earlier and relate it to ICT integration and (b) to observe a possible relationship between teachers’ level of competence and ICT integration in school. On the one hand, personal theory might affect teachers’ perception of their role and willingness to change a traditional teaching setting. On the other hand, a
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
67
greater mastering of ICT might be related to differences regarding personal theories, organization of teaching, classroom interactions, and teachers’ level of motivation in integrating ICT in school.
Methodology
Participants
Twenty-four teachers from north-eastern areas (Trento and Padua) in Italy were included in this study. They volunteered to participate in the project and their collaboration was offered outside their school hours. When looking for participants, we tried to balance teaching experience and level of competence with ICT, by talking to the school principal and/or the ICT operator.
Characteristics of the Sample
Firstly, a total of 32 teachers were asked to fill in a questionnaire. This questionnaire was adapted from one devised for the Eunet Project.[1] There were four sections concerning (a) information about teaching experience (school level, years of teaching and subject); (b) level of education in ICT (duration and type of training, individual study); (c) self-evaluation on level of competence in general with ICT and with specific computer uses; (d) type of computer use and frequency of utilization.
Information derived from sections (b) and (c) was used to find two groups with different levels of competence. The ‘low competent’ group was composed of the first 12 teachers (out of the larger sample), who were examined and found to have attended courses involving only basic information on computer use and who did not work independently to further their competence in ICT. The other group involved the first 12 teachers who were found to be ‘high competent’. They had had longer and more specific training; four of them were ‘expert’-teachers providing in-service courses to other teachers. For the purposes of the present study, the responses of the remaining participants were not examined.
The teachers differed in terms of the level they were teaching (nine in elementary schools, eight in junior high schools, and seven in high schools), number of years of teaching (half of them had been teaching for more than 20 years and the remaining half for less than 20 years), and subject matter (see Table I).
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
68
Humanistic Scientific Technical Total Elementary < 20 years 3 3 – 6 > 20 years 2 1 – 3 Junior < 20 years 1 1 – 2 > 20 years 1 3 2 6 High < 20 years – 2 2 4 > 20 years 1 1 1 3 Total 8 11 5 24
Table I. Number of teachers at each school level, according to years of
teaching and type of subject.
One of our interests was to look at the type of relationship between level of competence and frequency of computer use.
Competence Low High Total Infrequent use Elementary 5 1 6 Junior 3 1 4 High 2 2 4 Frequent use Elementary – 3 3 Junior 2 2 4 High – 3 3 Total 12 12 24
Table II. Number of teachers at each school level, according
to level of competence and frequency of utilisation.
As can be seen from Table II, frequency of utilization tended to vary with level of competence: 10 low competent teachers had a limited use of the computer (1 hour a week or less), and eight competent teachers used the computer frequently (at least 2 hours per week). Typically, teachers making little use of the computer (both high and low competent teachers) used open tools, chiefly word processors, but also Excel, databases, etc., and two of them used Logo. The teachers making greater use of the computer, in addition to open tools, also used hypermedia, Logo and Microworlds. The competent teachers more specifically used hypermedia both to read and to produce material, Cabri, graphics editors, and to a lesser extent CD-ROM resources. Only four of the 24 teachers made regular use of the Internet and web pages. Thus, in general competent teachers compared to low competent teachers achieved a greater integration of ICT into their teaching, but there were exceptions in both directions (i.e. high competence with low use in classroom, low competence with high use).
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
69
Interview
After completing the questionnaire, teachers were interviewed and asked to reflect upon their experience with and without ICT, in terms of benefits, problems, possible changes in their professional role, teaching activities, and pupils’ learning. In particular, six main topics were covered, starting with broad questions and then prompting the teacher with more specific ones (see Appendix A).
1. General questions dealing with teachers’ attitudes to and benefits of using the computer. 2. Specific questions about abilities and characteristics in various areas (cognition, motivation, socialization) relating to both teaching and learning. 3. Roles in the classroom, dealing with teachers’ control and with possible changes in the usual teacher-learner relationship. 4. Individual differences: ability to deal with pupils with learning and other disabilities; knowledge of pupils’ characteristics. 5. Professional development: dealing with planning, teaching strategies and generalization from different settings; expectations; satisfaction.
The sixth topic, that is (6) ‘Evaluation and assessment’ will not be included; it will be discussed in a future article.
Teachers were individually interviewed in a quiet room in their school and, with their permission, the answers were tape-recorded.
Coding
From the teachers’ interviews and narratives, indications could be derived about their teaching styles, allowing inferences to be made concerning factors affecting the integration of ICT in their teaching.
The interviews were transcribed and analysed to identify comments, ideas, and examples from their practice concerning their attitudes, beliefs, abilities, skills and feelings relating to various aspects of teaching, learning and computer use.
For this purpose, the transcripts were coded utilizing four core dimensions. The comments pertaining to each core dimension were examined to further specify their content (cognition, metacognition, affect, attention, social aspects, attitudes, roles, control over learning and its outcomes, expectations, and satisfaction about competence and school support).
o Personal theories of teaching and learning. Information on teachers’ models was derived from comments pertaining to their attitudes and beliefs about their role; teaching methods in terms of strategies and behaviours; ideas about how teaching and learning take place; and perceptions about the role of computer. On the basis of this information,
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
70
the teachers’ models fell into one of the three categories: transmissionist orientation, individual constructivism or social constructivism.
o Procedures to organize and manage work with ICT. Comments were related to aspects such as planning by the teacher and/or by the pupils; sharing a computer station; working individually, in pairs or in a group; control over pupils’ work.
o Communication and social interactions in the classroom. The analysis considered the direction of the interactions (teacher-pupil, pupil-teacher, pupil-pupil, and teacher-teacher), and the goal of the communicative interactions, e.g. technical help, exchange of ideas and problem-solving discussions.
o Motivation to teach and learn using ICT. It included analysis of comments pertaining to interest, affective disposition, and reactions (positive or negative), willingness to learn and devote extra time, and attitudes towards changing traditional settings.
The interviews were analysed first by reading the transcripts, to obtain a general idea of the conceptualisation of teaching and learning with ICT. Then comments were coded in one of the core dimensions and analysed at a specific level of content. As an example of the coding procedure, a comment specified as cognitive abilities carrying a motivational aspect fell under the fourth dimension, or under the second dimension if relating to classroom management, etc. Using this procedure it was possible to observe commonalities and differences among teachers, and to try to understand the reasons for them, without losing the flavor of the whole interview.
The teachers’ comments at a specific level were coded entirely by one judge who was trained on two pilot interviews (which were not included in the results); a second judge coded 30% of the interviews. The agreement was fairly high and reached 88% of the units. Concerning the four core dimensions, one judge identified the core dimension underlying each categorized statement, and a second judge randomly checked a small portion of each transcript; the agreement reached 94% of the units.
Results
Teachers’ Perceptions of Their Role
Over half of the participants (n=13) revealed in some respects a constructivist model and emphasized a new role of ‘guide’. The teachers set some instructions and guidelines to enable pupils to work more independently. They were available to offer support during pupils’ work, giving advice and consulting individual students or groups, and they felt that during the computer sessions they were better able to cope with individual differences and needs, compared to during traditional lectures. Students had the chance to work with greater autonomy, more independently of the teachers.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
71
There were differences between high and low competent teachers sharing this general view.
‘Guides’: high competent teachers. Examining high competent teachers, eight teachers defined themselves as ‘guides’ and stated that the teacher was no longer an authoritarian figure, the person in which knowledge is deposited, who knows how to gain it, and whose intended task is to transfer it:
We needed to question our traditional role and favour a more collaborative atmosphere ... The role is more symmetrical. (High school teacher)
... the teacher does not teach ex cathedra, cannot have a paternalistic attitude; pupils do not treat me in a reverential manner. (Elementary school teacher)
These teachers explicitly questioned transmissionist teaching. They acknowledged that with ICT different roles were implemented both for teacher and pupils. A change took place from a teacher giving lectures that pupils have to keep in mind for a later test, to pupils working more independently to exercise and to research:
Traditional teaching is for the whole class, but it is not understood by everyone: those that are more prepared understand better. With the computer, information is managed more by the student. (Junior school teacher)
... not a transmissionist model of school but an operative model, in which there are projects to be carried out. (Elementary school teacher)
I do not transmit facts but we work with conceptual maps ... A project is carried out in the classroom, in the external environment to collect some data, and also with the computer, to construct and discuss the text. (Elementary school teacher)
Thus, teaching strategies and behaviours were affected accordingly. The introduction of the computer allowed teachers to deal with the learners not as an undifferentiated whole, but as individuals. Pupils could discover their own solutions to problems and follow different paths in constructing their knowledge. Moreover, having students with different achievement levels was less problematic during the lab sessions:
I can diversify the tasks depending on the pupils’ level, and take care of the more problematic ones. (Junior school teacher)
I listen more to the pupils, I am prompted by my constant interest and curiosity for what they do and how they do it. (Elementary school teacher)
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
72
I do not give solutions, but I pose problems in a viable way for them to research. (High school teacher)
A note of caution was also raised, to avoid ‘laissez-faire’ attitudes:
But there are limitations to this autonomy, directing and coordinating are part of the teacher’s role, who has to keep track of what is going on. (Junior school teacher)
Guides: low competent teachers. In addition, five low competent teachers (at any school level) perceived that their role changed and they assumed a role of guide. They tutored individual students and considered that the outcome of the work with the computer was also the result of group interactions and pupils’ autonomous work. However, they found it very demanding to handle the role of guide they had assigned to themselves, and stressed its impact on their own behaviour. In other words, these teachers focused on what is required of them, such as, for example, the necessity of setting a different learning context, the high amount of support needed, the extra stress of moving around the computer stations, and difficulty in handling some problematic classrooms.
I need athletic abilities during lab time, we would need to bring to the lab a small portion of the class or have the help of a second teacher. (Junior school teacher)
I give some directions but then I lose a lot of time to go by every station to deal with a problem and see what they have done. (High school teacher)
Transmissionist Teachers. The remaining 11 teachers demonstrated, although at different levels, a transmissionist perspective of teaching, one in which the teachers set the goals and need to have control on what and how pupils learn. Four high competent teachers and one low competent teacher seemed to combine a model in which knowledge is transferred with a sort of mentalistic approach. In general, they tended to keep a directive role, using the computer to present stimulating learning material. In the lab sessions, they appeared to set a teacher-centred context but also tried to enable students’ thinking skills by reflecting upon the proposed material.
Compared to these teachers, the other six low competent teachers ran their lecturing and computer sessions in a more traditional way. Not only they did not use the computer to present their lectures, but also the tasks conducted in the lab sessions had a narrow focus, allowing little autonomous thinking. While one teacher liked the ‘productivity’ of ICT in terms of storing and retrieving things, other teachers tended to minimize the role of the computer:
The computer is only an updated tool to teach the same things. (Elementary school teacher)
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
73
In summary, some of the teachers at both levels of ICT competence perceived themselves as collaborators and learning with the computer as an active process, but this was difficult to pursue by the low competent teachers. With regard to the directive teachers, the competent ones focused on improving knowledge transfer and autonomous thinking, whereas the low competent teachers focused on the problem of control.
Work Organization and Interactions in the Classroom
The second and third dimensions are discussed together. The teachers’ styles are characterized by a great deal of decision making (e.g. Clark & Peterson, 1986; Schoenfeld, 1999), dealing in part with the organization of work, communication channels, spatial setting of the classroom, and proximity. In these respects, teachers’ interventions could involve communicative, social, and relational aspects between teacher and pupils, and among pupils themselves.
Altogether, seven teachers had students do individual work, one teacher never had students use the computer, and 16 teachers made pupils share a computer, mostly in pairs formed by the teacher. The interest here was to observe whether interactions and classroom management varied according to the teaching model and/or the level of competence.
Teachers as Guides: high competence. Of the high competent teachers perceiving themselves as a guide, six teachers had students working together and were categorized as pattern (a). They emphasized new (or greater) possibilities for knowledge sharing, cooperative learning, and discussion among pupils themselves and with the teacher. Depending on the type of task, interactions were directed towards planning and decision making, taking into account different perspectives.
For the other two ICT competent guides, learning was the result of individual constructions. They did not aim at enhancing communications among pupils. They liked pupils to work individually, to offer increased opportunities for reasoning and reflecting personally about knowledge and learning processes through the interaction with the machine, and were placed in pattern (b). It is worth noting that one of these teachers made pupils share the computer, but without sharing the work; one did the work while the other was an observer, the underlying idea being that a deeper reflection could be achieved when the student is not personally engaged in using the computer.
Teachers as Guides: low competence. The five low competent teachers perceiving themselves as a guide had pupils working in pairs. They expressed appreciation of the socialization aspect; however, much interaction between the pupils was devoted to helping them to solve procedural problems related to ‘how to do it’ with the computer. This also achieved the goal of reducing the number of individual interventions made
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
74
to the teachers. Due to the lack of experience with ICT, although they revealed a constructivist conception of teaching, their classroom management ended up involving a transmissionist flavour, with the person knowing more transferring knowledge to the one knowing less. Thus, they were identified as pattern (c).
Transmissionist Teachers. We examined whether transmissionist teachers showed the same patterns identified for the constructivist teachers. If this was the case, it would indicate that the teaching model is not a critical factor affecting the style of organizing classroom work.
Four high competent teachers and one of the low competent teachers were categorized as pattern (d). They made extended use of the computer to improve their lectures. Attention was kept under control, for example, by making pupils focus on the same part of the material presented on the screen:
It happens that some material presents many aspects on which attention could be directed; I try to draw their attention to one of those, but some pupils pay attention over a different direction, and maybe they divert also other students’ attention. (Elementary school teacher)
They frequently emphasized that their goal was to involve simultaneously all students on the same task also during the lab sessions. Interactions were rather limited and under the teacher’s control. They adopted different strategies. One teacher (High) never made students use the computer. The other teachers, when working in groups, lowered the requirements of the task to enable all students to do some work, independent of their computer skills. The computer was used individually whenever possible, with minimal interactions from nearby stations, confined to procedural aspects. Although one of them mentioned a positive experience with a group of children carrying out a cooperative task (to make a CD-ROM), this was not adopted as a new strategy. For four teachers, the ideal situation would be to have students work more independently of the teacher’s step-by-step control, showing some consideration of the potential benefits of active learning, with uses such as information searching or hypertexts. However, they did not propose to further their training in order to make it possible.
The remaining six ‘non-guide’ teachers were low competent teachers. Two of them had a traditional model of teaching categorized as pattern (e). They did not use the computer to improve their lectures and controlled students’ work either through individual use or by assigning very narrow tasks, using the computer to execute tasks completely prepared ‘at the table’ before going to the lab.
Finally, the remaining four teachers had students working in pairs and were categorized as pattern (f). Unlike pattern (c) and similar to pattern (e) above, they seldom mentioned learning benefits stemming from the social interactions. Their main concern was to control the classroom and to monitor that all pupils would do their work, and in fact, they talked about
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
75
‘sharing the computer’ rather than ‘sharing the work. Thus, for teachers in patterns (e) and (f), working individually or in pairs was not related to intentionally fostering pupils’ independent construction of knowledge.
In sum, 6 patterns were identified as summarized below:
pattern (a) n=6 guide teachers, high competence pattern (b) n=2 guide teachers, high competence pattern (c) n=5 guide teachers, low competence pattern (d) n=4 transmissionist teachers, high competence n=1 transmissionist teachers, low competence pattern (e) n=2 transmissionist teachers, low competence pattern (f) n=4 transmissionist teachers, low competence
Altogether, the interview data suggest that both level of competence and teachers’ epistemologies contribute towards determining a teaching style in terms of strategies and, in particular, how the class was managed when the computer is integrated into teaching. The different patterns seemed to involve several consequences regarding motivational aspects relating to cognition and affect, both for teachers and students.
Teachers’ Motivation to Change and to Learn: cognitive and affective aspects
It seems that teachers belonging to different teaching patterns have different sources of motivation.
Disposition to Learn and Work Hard. Constructivist teachers showed a personal disposition to learn in the classroom setting, allowing a less distant, less asymmetrical relationship and mentioning reciprocal learning between teacher and pupils. For example:
The teachers put themselves in a challenging situation, facing new learning. (High school teacher)
When working with the students, you learn a lot from them. (Elementary school teacher)
Competent teachers in patterns (a) and (b) liked the challenge and the new perspectives that the new teaching and learning contexts made possible. They put themselves in a learning environment, willing to create a better relational and cognitive context, more motivating to themselves and to the pupils:
You observe the work done by the students not having in mind anymore what you were used to consider the solution, and you discover also some solutions that did not come to your mind! (Elementary school teacher)
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
76
The guide teachers at both levels of competence, compared to the non-guide ones, felt that they could work in a more creative way both in the classroom and when programming their activities, and were willing to make extended use of the computer with the students, to supplement traditional tools:
The teachers need to prepare themselves in a different way, to make our own projects, not relying completely on the teaching guides available on the market. (Elementary school teacher)
If we could make greater use of the computer for teaching we could use less the textbook and would devote more time to do research. (Junior school teacher)
In general, all high competent teachers, independently of the pattern, and the low competent guides were motivated to work harder, although the latter group of teachers also felt some frustration because too much time was devoted to ‘keeping the students going’ during a lab session, sometimes at the expense of the goal to be reached. The low competent teachers in patterns (e) and (f) were not willing to put more effort into preparation, as they felt that the introduction of the computer was already more demanding than expected.
Disposition to Change Their Role. The trasmissionist-oriented teachers did not seem motivated to change their directive role, in order not to lose a status attributed to it. Although high competent teachers in pattern (d), as seen above, ideally favoured computer use for active information searching and processing, they did not look forward to becoming more competent in using the computer for independent learning. This seemed to suggest that they were not motivated to give up part of a strong teaching role, and to change work processes and organization. Transmissionist teachers and two low competent guide teachers stated that they would not accept being in a context in which they knew less than their pupils:
... we cannot go in front of an audience with only minimal and essential knowledge to work with the computer. (High school teacher)
The pupils could do things by themselves ... One of the problems with the computer is that it seems we don’t have control anymore, even more so if they start to use Internet ... with Internet the pupils will know more than the teacher and that would bother me, it tends to go out of control. (Junior school teacher)
Thus, a critical problem for teachers, at both levels of competence, seemed to be that of power and control: the teacher should have in mind solutions to any possible question posed by the students, who were considered as an audience, and students’ independent learning was seen as a threat to their role. Sometimes the need for control traditionally expected by the school context was given as a reason for running the classroom in a traditional way.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
77
An example from the competent teacher whose students do not work with the computer:
The school demands that we have control. If I am here working with a small group on something and with another group on something else, anybody coming in would say: ‘This teacher cannot keep the classroom, it went out of control.’ (High school teacher)
Six teachers, independently of the pattern, introduced physical proximity with the pupils as a variable affected by the introduction of the computer. It appeared that whereas for the guide teachers greater proximity was a welcome change, the non-guide ones considered it the result of a sort of ‘necessity’ rather than a teacher’s intentional choice.
Motivation to Communicate Among Teachers. Communication between colleagues appeared to be affected in several ways by the introduction of the computer and, in turn, it affected their motivation to use it. In general, teachers indicated a feeling of self-efficacy, in that the interactions in school improved due to different sources. On the one hand, half of the teachers presented their material in a more formal way during the school or class meetings and this was perceived as an improvement. On the other hand, when doing some tasks with the computer, the teachers felt at ease enough to ask for help, receiving a collaborative response from a colleague. Other aspects like sharing experience, ideas, and databases were addressed mainly by competent teachers. A new flexibility and ease of communication was underlined since a teacher would not need to ask for permission to look at what a colleague had stored, and a discussion could start through which the participants could make some progress. The following are two examples of how interaction with colleagues may affect motivation to use the computer or limit its use:
Relationships with the colleagues are changing, we trade material and exchange experiences; it is very exciting, we are like a club. (High school teacher)
Only three of us use the computer in my school, out of 40 teachers. I would not like to use it more frequently than what I am currently doing, I would be considered an odd teacher by the other colleagues. (Elementary school teacher)
Cognitive and Metacognitive Abilities and Motivation. Another aspect of motivation affected by ICT is related to abilities perceived to be enhanced by computer use. Teachers pointed out that they made more use of logical abilities and that they improved the organization of their own work. In general, teachers indicated that working and/or presenting their lecture with the computer was more demanding on their concentration, but this was considered a positive challenge by constructivist teachers. These teachers were more likely to acknowledge that one of the most important changes
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
78
concerned their metacognitive level, in terms of intentional learning, knowledge and reflection upon their processes, and the adoption of executive control strategies, like planning and monitoring, and self-regulation:
For a teacher there is an increase in the level of intentionality concerning what we are doing and the learning processes, and that is much needed. (Junior school teacher)
We increase our awareness of what we are doing, the goals, the quality also ... it is a construction. (Junior school teacher)
Thus, from these and other interview excerpts presented above, it seems that the constructivist teachers were characterized by an intrinsic motivation to use ICT. Moreover, compared with the remaining patterns, constructivist teachers did not point out negative sources affecting their motivation.
External Sources of Motivation. The high competent teachers holding a transmissionist epistemology were intrinsically motivated to use the computer. They had the feeling that both their teaching abilities and students’ responses improved:
... you need to follow a sequence of steps, it should be a way of thinking of the teacher to be passed on to the pupils. (Elementary school teacher)
Talking to the pupils impromptu one can easily lose track and change topic, using the computer you are kept on the task, you can control yourself and focus more on the task. (High school teacher)
However, compared to constructivist teachers they relied more on extrinsic sources of motivation:
My goal is to raise some interest toward the computer on my pupils. (Elementary school teacher)
When I teach the lesson in preparation of the computer session, my students don’t show any behavioural problem. (High school teacher)
For the low competent teachers, motivation tended to be even more extrinsic, located mainly in students’ reactions, whereas the effort required to use the computer tended to reduce the motivation to use ICT:
I like it, they see me as a modern person because I use the computer. (Elementary school teacher)
My goal is to transfer things in a pleasant way; the best is to say ‘I taught, and I did it in a way they enjoyed’. (Elementary school teacher)
I thought that by using the computer my work would speed up, instead I spend more time. (Junior school teacher)
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
79
Moreover, they blamed lack of support and resources, in terms of a sufficient number of computers or the presence of a colleague during the computer session ‘to keep the class’.
Discussion
In general, the great majority of the teachers found positive aspects regarding the introduction of the computer in the school context; however, they did not show an uncritical acceptance and did not look forward to replacing traditional teaching in every respect.
The data presented here do not seem to confirm the typical view that the introduction of the computer in school will promote an overall change in the traditional way of teaching and controlling what goes on in the classroom. There were changes, but while in part they were the result of teachers’ reflection and effort to accommodate (to use old-fashioned Piagetian terminology) their teaching styles to the potentialities of the new tool in the school setting, in part they were attempts to assimilate the new tool into existing teaching models and routines. Different teaching modalities were revealed when using the computer in the classroom and some factors seemed to interact to influence teaching styles. Maor & Taylor (1995) suggested that how the students work with the computer seems to be related to the teachers’ behaviours in the classroom and such a relationship depends on the teacher’s own epistemological and pedagogical views and skills. However, they admitted that their conclusions were based on research in which the only ICT use considered was designed for individual learning.
Although we do not directly address the question about whether this finding can be generalized to different contexts, through the present study some variables were identified which seemed to contribute to how ICT was implemented and integrated. The teachers were found to hold different epistemological beliefs about the teaching-learning relationship, showing features similar to either a teacher-centred perspective, such as directive and transmissionist approaches, or a student-centred view, such as personal constructivist and social constructivist perspectives. Furthermore, teachers were exposed to different levels of ICT training. The high competent teachers, compared to the low competent ones, increased their knowledge and practice through their own study, in addition to the formal training received. On the one hand, our study (but more data would be needed to confirm it) showed that frequency of utilization of the computer for teaching, length of teaching experience, and school level did not vary with the teaching epistemology held by a teacher. On the other hand, frequency of utilization in the classroom seemed to be associated with level of competence, a higher utilization being found with higher competent teachers. Although being an ICT competent teacher did not imply sharing a unique perspective on the personal theory of teaching, a constructivist perspective was more common among the competent teachers. Moreover, a
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
80
relationship between level of competence and pattern of work organization was also found. Thus, behaviours and strategies in teaching and managing the classroom were influenced by interacting factors like the level of competence with ICT and teaching epistemology. Altogether, these factors were related to (1.) type of work organization, (2.) role assigned to teachers themselves and to the students in the teaching-learning relationship, (3.) level of task to be performed with the computer, whether self-directed or teacher-directed, (4.) disposition and effort to increase competence, both as a challenge to learn about a new tool and to improve teaching and pupils’ independent learning (Dweck, 1999).
In general, a personal theory of teaching and learning was related also to whether the presence of individual differences was likely to be considered a problem. For teachers holding a constructivist conception, this very fact would give students the opportunity to benefit from different contributions, sharing what they know and are able to do, so that they could experience being, in turn, both a learner and a teacher. The transmissionist teachers, on the contrary, could not capitalize on this characteristic of the group, because their main goal was to have all students perform the same task at the same level.
From this preliminary study, it appears that the mere fact of changing the classroom context to allow pupils to work together was not linked to a specific model. Many reasons could influence this choice. On the one hand, to have students working together could be related either to a personal model of teaching, or to the need for reciprocal help, or else to the lack of computers. On the other hand, having students do individual work could be due to an intentional choice of making students learn through personal reflection by interacting with the computer, but it could also be a response to the need to avoid problems of control and evaluation or, simply, to the presence of a number of computers at a one-to-one ratio, rather than being the result of a choice. For this reason, working individually or in pairs does not seem, by itself, to allow us to make predictions on the qualitative level of the teaching and learning relationship with ICT. However, the type of interactions going on in the classroom did seem to be affected both by the teachers’ conception of teaching and their level of competence.
To summarize, how may we account for the difference in teaching styles? What would contribute to the teachers’ choices and decisions about how to use the computer in the classroom? Although we do not have sufficient data to understand the basis of the different styles identified, it seems that personal theories of teaching and levels of ICT competence interact so that a more sophisticated conceptualisation of teaching and learning with the computer was found more frequently among the high competent teachers.
What accounts for the interaction between these two factors? Motivation could be considered a mediating factor that works as a loop: it increases the disposition to become more competent and, when competent,
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
81
the teacher’s motivation to try new strategies and roles increases (Wiener, 1994). Other characteristics of the teachers, in part relating to personal theories of teaching, deal with the inclination to make professional changes, whose level and quality are again linked back and forwards to expectations relating to effort and outcome, perception of their own abilities, conception of the subject in terms of goals to reach and teaching methods (Easdown, 2000), knowledge (subject, pedagogical and technical), and level of satisfaction. Past experience as learners and as teachers could also be interconnected variables, worth researching further.
Moreover, the feeling of receiving enough support during their ICT work could affect the disposition to become more competent and, along with greater learning and experience, encourage reflection on their personal theories. Some teachers explicitly stated that they preferred to share with other colleagues what they were doing in their classroom and how they were doing it, with the feeling that what they needed, at that point, was to discuss practical classroom experiences with other teachers, rather than go on a course. Help-seeking behaviour appeared, throughout the transcripts, to occur among peers, i.e. it was easier for a teacher to show weak points and ask a colleague for advice, rather than an expert outside the reality of the school context. Thus, it is reasonable to expect that direct coaching, not only during practical ICT training, but also during lab sessions actually carried out with the pupils, would also help teachers to increase their self-confidence, experience effective communication with colleagues, and would favour their willingness to expand ICT competence and integration.
In addition, the formal training already provided to the teachers could have been either technical or pedagogical, rarely both, and how the courses were conducted could also differ. Thus, it would be useful to have data on a wider scale in order to discuss the impact of the type of training both on teachers’ motivation to become more competent and increase the integration of ICT in teaching, and on the type of practice and problems encountered.
Final Remark
It has been suggested that schools tend to assimilate new things into a pre-existing situation, rather than adapt to a novelty and make the required changes (e.g. Fabry & Higgs, 1997; Peck & Dorricott, 1994). Thus, on the one hand, the whole school environment might have to reconsider its organizational structures and the resources available. On the other hand, teachers need to have a good disposition towards ICT in education. In particular, they should have the opportunity to make explicit their personal theory, discussing their role inside the classroom, and questioning how they teach. This last change is seen as the most important if ICT is to become integrated into teaching, but it is also the hardest to make (Means & Olsen, 1995).
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
82
Acknowledgements
This study was partially supported by funding granted to the Eunet MM1010, workpackage 16 project. Thanks are due to Tim Denning, Nafsika Alexiadou, Solveig Jakobsdóttir, Isabel Chagas and Bianca Maria Varisco for their support and useful discussions. We would also like to thank Annalisa Saviano for her help in data collection and coding, and the teachers who participated in the study.
Correspondence
Professor Camilla Gobbo, Department of Developmental and Socialization Psychology, Via Venezia 8, 35141 Padua, Italy ([email protected]).
Note
[1] The EUN Multimedia Schoolnet, Workpackage 16, MM1010, is a project dealing with pedagogical issues on ICT integration in teacher education, carried out between 1998-2000 (http://www.eunet.org). The Coordinator was Tim Denning from the University of Keele (United Kingdom) and it involved researchers from four European countries: Iceland, Italy, Portugal and the United Kingdom. The main goals of the project were: to survey current practice in the use of ICT in education, relating both to student teachers and teachers in-service; and to establish guidelines to inform practice to make ICT education more effective, through the use of case studies and contacts made among researchers and schools via EUN fora and EUN WP16 workshops.
References
Alexander, P. A., Murphy, P. K., Guan, J. & Murphy, P. A. (1998) How Students and Teachers in Singapore and the United States Conceptualize Knowledge and Beliefs: positioning learning within epistemological frameworks, Learning and Instruction, 8, pp. 97-116.
Berry, J. & Sahlberg, P. (1996) Investigating Pupils’ Ideas of Learning, Learning and Instruction, 6, pp. 19-36.
Bigge, M. L. & Shermis, S. S. (1999) Learning Theories for Teachers. New York: Longman.
Brown, A. L. (1994) The Advancement of Learning, Educational Researcher, 23, pp. 4-12.
Brown, A. L. & Campione, J. C. (1990) Communities of Learning and Thinking, or a Context by Any Other Name, in D. Kuhn (Ed.) Developmental Perspectives on Teaching and Learning Thinking Skills. Basel: Karger.
Brown, A. L. & Campione, J. C. (1994) Guided Discovery in a Community of Learners, in K. McGilly (Ed.) Classroom Lessons: integrating cognitive theory and classroom practice. Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
83
Bruner, J. (1990) Acts of Meaning. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Cesareni, D. (1999) Gli Insegnanti e le Tecnologie Multimediali (The Teachers and New Multimedia Technologies), in C. Pontecorvo (Ed.) Manuale di Psicologia dell’educazione (Textbook on Psychology of Education). Bologna: Il Mulino.
Clark, C. & Peterson, P. (1986) Teachers’ Thought Processes, in M. Wittrock (Ed.) Handbook of Research on Teaching. New York: Macmillan.
Cochran-Smith, M. & Lytle, S. L. (1995) Relationship of Knowledge and Practice: teacher learning in communities, Review of Educational Psychology, 24, pp. 249-305.
Dweck, C. (1999) Self-theories. Their role in motivation, personality, and development. Philadelphia: Psychology Press.
Easdown, G. (2000) Presentation at the second workshop of the Eunet project, MM1010, workpackage 16, Keele.
Edwards, S. & Mercer, N. (1987) Common Knowledge. London: Methuen.
Fabry, D. L. & Higgs, J. R. (1997) Barriers to the Effective Use of Technology in Education: current status, Journal of Educational Computing Research, 17, pp. 385-395.
Fox, D. (1983) Personal Theories of Teaching, Studies in Higher Education, 8, pp. 151-163.
Jehng, J. J., Johnson, S. D. & Anderson, R. C. (1993) Schooling and Students’ Epistemological Beliefs, Contemporary Educational Psychology, 18, pp. 23-25.
Mantovani, G. (1995) Comunicazione e Identità (Communication and Identity). Bologna: Il Mulino.
Maor, D. & Taylor, P. C. (1995) Teacher Epistemology and Scientific Inquiry in Computerized Classroom Environments, Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 32, pp. 839-854.
Marton, F., Dall’Alba, G. & Beaty, E. (1993) Conceptions of Learning, International Journal of Educational Research, 19, pp. 277-300.
Means, B. & Olsen, K. (1995) Restructuring Schools with Technology: challenges and strategies. Menlo Park: SRI International.
Norman, D. A. (1988) The Psychology of Everyday Things. New York: Basic Books.
Peck, K. L. & Dorricott, D. (1994) Why Use Technology, Educational Leadership, 51, pp. 11-14.
Salomon, G. & Perkins, D. N. (1998) Individual and Social Aspects of Learning, Review of Research in Education, 23, pp. 1-24.
Schoenfeld, A. H. (1999) Looking Toward the 21st Century: challenges of educational theory and practice, Educational Researcher, 28, pp. 4-14.
Schofield, W. J. (1995) Computer and Classroom Culture. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Solomon, J. (1987) Social Influences on the Construction of Pupils’ Understanding of Science, Studies on Science Education, 14, pp. 63-82.
Talamo, A., Lauret, B. & Ligorio, B. (2000) Euroland. A virtual world fostering collaboration. Presentation at the second workshop of the Eunet project, MM1010, workpackage 16, Keele.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
84
Tobin, K. G., Briscoe, C. & Holman, J. R. (1990) Overcoming Constraints to Effective Elementary Science Teaching, Science Education, 74, pp. 409-420.
Tynjälä, P. (1997) Developing Education Students’ Conceptions of the Learning Process in Different Learning Environments, Learning and Instruction, 7, pp. 277-292.
Varisco, B. M. (1995) Alle Radici dell’ipertestualità (The Roots of Hypertext), in A. Calvani & B. M. Varisco (Eds) Costruire/Decostruire Significati, pp. 2-86 (To Construct/Deconstruct Meanings). Padua: CLEUP.
Varisco, B. M. & Gobbo, C. (2000) Teachers Training and ICT in Education in Italy [on-line]. Available at: http://www.eun.org
Vygotsky, L. S. (1978) Mind in Society. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press.
Wiener, B. (1994) Integrating Social and Personal Theories of Achievement Striving, Review of Educational Psychology, 82, pp. 616-622.
Yinger, R. J. & Hendricks-Lee, M. S. (1993) Working Knowledge in Teaching, in C. Day, J. Calderhead & P. Denicolo (Eds) Research on Teacher Thinking: understanding professional development. London: Falmer Press.
Zambelli, F. & Cherubini, G. (Eds) (1999) Manuale della Scuola dell’obbligo: l’insegnante e i suoi contesti (Compulsory Schoolteachers’ Education: the teachers and teaching contexts). Milan: Franco Angeli.
APPENDIX A
1. What do you think about the introduction of the computer in the school context? 2. What is it useful for and who obtains the greater benefits? 3. Are there changes connected to the introduction of the computer in school, compared to teaching without the computer? 4. Now think about how learning and teaching take place with or without the computer: 5. What about abilities and skills used? (If the teacher made reference to cognitive abilities, she was asked whether she found out about specific mental abilities coming into play when using the computer) 6. Could you say something also about motivation? 7. And about the social aspects? Could tell me what role they play in either setting? 8. What do you think about the roles played by the teachers and the pupils, with the introduction of the computer in school? (If the teacher has not already addressed the following aspects: Could you say something about how you deal with your classroom? What would you say about control over what is learned and how it is learned?)
For any of the above questions, the teachers were prompted to talk about both their pupils and themselves. Moreover, if the teachers reported that a change occurred in any aspect, they were prompted to make specific reference to their experience.
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
TEACHERS’ BELIEFS AND ICT
85
9. In which situation, with or without the computer, do you feel you could know your pupils better? (If necessary, the teacher was prompted to specify how knowledge of pupils’ abilities and personal characteristics was affected by the use of the computer in the classroom). What about taking care of individual differences? (Asked only if not already addressed by the teacher.) 10. With the integration of the computer in teaching your subject, did you have to make any change to curriculum planning and implementation? What about generalization of strategies and behaviours from either setting? 11. Could you say something about your expectations and level of satisfaction in terms of knowledge and competence and school support?
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
Camillo Gobbo & Marta Girardi
86
Dow
nloa
ded
by [
Cla
rkso
n U
nive
rsity
] at
14:
49 1
0 N
ovem
ber
2014
