scholarly journals “I just Google it” - Developing professional digital competence and preparing student teachers to exercise responsible ICT use

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (3-4) ◽  
pp. 39-55
Author(s):  
Dr. Greta Björk GUDMUNDSDOTTIR ◽  
Ove Edvard Hatlevik

The rapid emergence of information and communication technology (ICT) has had implications for the education system and initial teacher education (ITE) in particular. This study investigated the extent to which teacher education assists student teachers in developing their professional digital competence (PDC) in general and, more specifically, their competence in using ICT responsibly. Responsible use of ICT is here taken to include privacy and copyright issues, ethical issues and the ability to evaluate digital information. To explore Norwegian student teachers’ perspectives, awareness and experience of the responsible use of ICT, in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 student teachers before their practice placements at local schools and with six students after their practice placements. Overall, the findings indicate that the student teachers mostly knew how to search for and evaluate digital information, but that they tended to choose the most convenient approach for search and evaluation. Further, it seems that the student teachers were aware to some extent of how to avoid advertisements, marketing or inappropriate content when using online resources in the classroom. However, they had limited competence in dealing with privacy and copyright issues in a teaching setting. One of the challenges identified through this study is that, during practice placements, the attention seems to be on the technical aspects of ICT rather than on pedagogical or responsible ways of using ICT. The study concludes that teacher education programmes need to include responsible use of ICT as an integral part of their programme, as well as during student teachers’ practice placements in schools, rather than providing stand-alone activities or courses of limited duration.

2021 ◽  
pp. 57-86
Author(s):  
Greta Björk Gudmundsdottir ◽  
Julius K. Björnsson

How well are teachers prepared for digital technology in their work? In this chapter, we report on questions in the TALIS 2018 survey concerning information and communication technology (ICT). Teachers were asked how they use digital technology for student activities, how prepared they are for digital practice, and how they assess their own need for continuous professional development (CDP) related to using digital technology in a classroom setting. This chapter is divided into two main parts. In the first part, we introduce previous research in the field of digital competence. We look at how the use of digital technology has evolved in Norwegian schools and how it has been supported by various educational reforms. We also refer to frameworks and various analytical tools to better understand students’ digital competence and teachers’ professional digital competence (PDC). Furthermore, we consider the role of teacher education in developing teachers’ and student teachers’ PDC. In the second part of the chapter, we present findings from TALIS 2018. Here we highlight teachers’ needs and participation in CPD, the preparations they have received in teacher education, and how they use digital technology to promote students’ learning and engagement in various teaching activities. Findings on classroom management in technology-savvy environments are presented, and the general use of ICT within a Nordic comparative perspective is discussed. In conclusion, we summarize the most important findings and raise issues in need of further research.


Author(s):  
Sue Garton

The last 20-25 years have seen a significant shift in the views about what teachers need to know to be able to teach. This shift has led to new developments in the theory of second language teacher education (SLTE) and a growth in research in this area. One area of research concerns the attitudes and expectations of those learning to become teachers. While most studies in this area focus on teacher education programmes in BANA countries, this article looks at data from student teachers studying in Russia and Uzbekistan. The study employed a quantitative and qualitative research design, using a researcher-designed on-line questionnaire. Through snowball sampling, data from 161 students and recent graduates in the two countries were collected, analysed, and compared to investigate the content of SLTE programmes. The study identified what the novice teachers felt were the strengths and weaknesses of their programme, and what changes they would like to see. Results showed that while the respondents were mainly satisfied with their methodology, and theoretical linguistics courses, they felt the need for more practice, both teaching and language practice. The data also revealed that, in Uzbekistan in particular, the idea of global English struggles to take hold as native-speaker models remain the norm. The implications of the study underline the need for SLTE to explicitly link theory to practice and to promote the idea of varieties of English, rather than focus on native-speaker norms.


2019 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 128-143
Author(s):  
Késsia Mileny De Paulo Moura

RESUMO: Pesquisar a inserção das tecnologias digitais da informação e comunicação nos contextos formativos envolve problematizar as percepções, apropriações e significações de professores e alunos sobre a questão. Este texto buscou identificar as produções científicas brasileiras (teses e dissertações) a respeito do letramento digital na formação de professores, realizadas entre os anos de 2010 a 2018. Utilizamos a revisão sistemática como procedimento metodológico, com o auxílio do software Parsifal. Pontuamos as seguintes equações para verificar nos trabalhos: quais objetivos de pesquisa essas produções revelam? Que perspectivas de letramento digital e quais procedimentos e instrumentos metodológicos os pesquisadores adotaram? Quais resultados dos processos de letramento digital trabalhados na formação de professores foram revelados? Como resultados, validamos 37 trabalhos, que apontam as configurações das propostas de formação com usos das tecnologias digitais que procuram responder às novas dinâmicas sociais para as quais os alunos-professores precisam estar aptos. De acordo com as pesquisas encontradas, os cursos de formação inicial ou continuada têm inserido as tecnologias digitais em suas práticas, mas as possibilidades de usos ainda são muitas. PALAVRAS-CHAVE: letramento digital; formação de professores; revisão sistemática.   ABSTRACT: Researching the insertion of digital information and communication technologies in the formative contexts involves problematizing teachers and students’ perceptions, appropriations and meanings about the issue. This text sought to identify the Brazilian scientific productions (theses and dissertations) regarding digital literacy in teacher education, between the years 2010 to 2018. We used the systematic review as a methodological procedure, with the help of the Parsifal software. We scored the following equations to verify the work: which research objectives do these productions reveal? What perspectives of digital literacy and what procedures and methodological instruments did the researchers adopt? What results of the digital literacy processes worked on in the training of teachers were revealed? As results, we validated 37 works, which point out the settings of training proposals with uses of digital technologies that seek to respond to the new social dynamics that student-teachers need to be able to. According to the research works found, the initial or continued training courses have lent themselves to insert the digital technologies, but the possibilities of uses are still many. KEYWORDS: digital literacy; teacher training; systematic review.


Author(s):  
Jane Abbiss ◽  
Eline Vanassche

A review of the field of practice-focused research in Initial Teacher Education (ITE) reveals four broad genres of qualitative research: case studies of teacher education programs and developments; research into student teacher experience and learning; inquiry into teacher educators’ own learning, identity, and beliefs; and conceptual or theory-building research. This is an eclectic field that is defined by variation in methodologies rather than by a few clearly identifiable research approaches. What practice-focused research in ITE has in common, though, is a desire on the behalf of teacher educator researchers to understand the complexity of teacher education and contribute to shifts in practice, for the benefit of student teachers and, ultimately, for learners in schools and early childhood education. In this endeavor, teacher educator researchers are presented with a challenge to achieve a balance between goals of local relevance and making a theoretical contribution to the broader field. This is a persistent tension. Notwithstanding the capacity for practice-focused research to achieve a stronger balance and greater relevance beyond the local, key contributions of practice-focused research in ITE include: highlighting the importance of context, questioning what might be understood by “improvement” in teacher education and schooling, and pushing back against research power structures that undervalue practice-focused research. Drawing on a painting metaphor, each genre represents a collection of sketches of practice-focused research in ITE that together provide the viewer with an overview of the field. However, these genres are not mutually exclusive categories as any particular research study (or sketch) might be placed within one or more groupings; for example, inquiry into teacher educators’ own learning often also includes attention to student teachers’ experiences and case studies of teacher education initiatives inevitably draw on theory to frame the research and make sense of findings. Also, overviewing the field and identifying relevant research is not as simple as it might first appear, given challenges in identifying research undertaken by teacher educators, differences in the positioning of teacher educators within different educational systems, and privileging of American (US) views of teacher education in published research, which was counteracted in a small way in this review by explicitly including voices located outside this dominant setting. Examples of different types of qualitative research projects illustrate issues in teacher education that matter to teacher educator researchers globally and locally and how they have sought to use a variety of methodologies to understand them. The examples also show how teacher educators themselves define what is important in teacher education research, often through small-scale studies of context-specific teacher education problems and practices, and how there is value in “smaller story” research that supports understanding of both universals and particularities along with the grand narratives of teacher education.


Author(s):  
Brendan Mac Mahon ◽  
Seán Ó Grádaigh ◽  
Sinéad Ní Ghuidhir

Research on the use of iPad in initial teacher education is limited. This paper outlines a study to examine how the professional learning and pedagogical knowledge development of student teachers could be supported following 1:1 iPad deployment on a second level initial teacher education programme in Ireland. Findings show that iPad can be utilised both as an effective pedagogical tool and as a medium for the creation of new learning spaces where student teachers' professional and pedagogical knowledge development is supported through feedback, peer-learning, resource sharing and critical reflection. Creating resources with and for iPad as part of a collaborative design process can also support student teachers in developing and integrating technological, pedagogical and content knowledge (TPACK) within their approaches to teaching, learning and assessment. Implications for initial teacher education providers and the integration of technology within schools are outlined.


2016 ◽  
pp. 1016-1037
Author(s):  
Dianne Forbes

The following case reports on the involvement of children in online discussion with student teachers within initial teacher education in New Zealand. The focus is on listening to children, with wider implications for listening as a professional capability extending beyond the teaching profession. In this case, student teachers and pupils communicated online, exchanging ideas, debating, and engaging in co-construction of understandings around the place of Information and Communication Technologies in teaching and learning. The case explores the interaction and social dynamics observed and mutual learning experienced, with links to theoretical perspectives including constructivist and democratic pedagogies. Implications for improved practice are considered. It is argued that there is a need to explicitly teach listening skills and to encourage professionals in training to listen to clients. It is argued that the online environment is an excellent training ground for developing effective listening skills as it lends itself to reflective practice and to meta-listening awareness.


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