Efe, R. (2011). Science student teachers and educational technology; Experience, intentions, and value. Educational Technology & Society, 14(1), 228-240.
The author of this quantitative empirical research article examined science student teachers’ use of technology within the science classroom. The author collected information on the teachers’ experience with using technology in science instruction, their intentions for student use, and their attitudes on the effectiveness of technology on student learning.
The participants of this study were 448 science student teachers currently enrolled in a teacher education program at Dicle University in Turkey. Participants were asked to respond to items on a questionnaire using a Likert-type scale to rate their levels of technology background, intentions for using technology in the classroom, and the value of using technology for helping students learn in the content area of science. Participants also provided a written response discussing the importance of technology in science education. The results of this study showed that science student teachers who felt more comfortable with using technology or had more experience with using technology were more likely to intend to incorporate it into lesson plans, and believed that technology was a valuable tool for facilitating student learning in the science classroom.
Both teacher education programs and educators already in the classroom can benefit from the information presented in this study by noting that the more experience an educator has with technology, the more likely they are to incorporate it in the classroom. Providing training for educators on how to use educational technology in the classroom will allow teachers to feel a greater comfort level with using various methods of technology, and therefore increases educators’ beliefs that technology is an important tool in science classroom instruction.
The author of this quantitative empirical research article examined science student teachers’ use of technology within the science classroom. The author collected information on the teachers’ experience with using technology in science instruction, their intentions for student use, and their attitudes on the effectiveness of technology on student learning.
The participants of this study were 448 science student teachers currently enrolled in a teacher education program at Dicle University in Turkey. Participants were asked to respond to items on a questionnaire using a Likert-type scale to rate their levels of technology background, intentions for using technology in the classroom, and the value of using technology for helping students learn in the content area of science. Participants also provided a written response discussing the importance of technology in science education. The results of this study showed that science student teachers who felt more comfortable with using technology or had more experience with using technology were more likely to intend to incorporate it into lesson plans, and believed that technology was a valuable tool for facilitating student learning in the science classroom.
Both teacher education programs and educators already in the classroom can benefit from the information presented in this study by noting that the more experience an educator has with technology, the more likely they are to incorporate it in the classroom. Providing training for educators on how to use educational technology in the classroom will allow teachers to feel a greater comfort level with using various methods of technology, and therefore increases educators’ beliefs that technology is an important tool in science classroom instruction.