The impact of technology on the development of expertise and teacher beliefs

The Impact of Technology on the Development of Expertise and Teacher Beliefs by Diane Robinson Penland M.A., Northern Arizona University, 1984 B.A., Arizona State University, 1981 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Education Walden University May 2011 Abstract Although successful integration of technology into classrooms has proven beneficial to the learning process, little is yet known about how teachers respond to the introduction of technology and why some choose to use it while others do not. Using Sandoltz’ stages of teacher technology adoption as a framework, this multiple case study utilized historical data that captured the experiences of teachers in 2001-2002 to determine the process of teachers’ adoption of innovations into existing classroom practices. Participants included a purposive sample of eight 5 and 6-grade teachers from 3 schools. Data sources included teacher interviews, classroom observations, and video recordings of classroom practices for each teacher. Analysis included deconstruction by research question to identify patterns and emerging themes. The findings in this study showed that the voluntary nature of participation in technology integration activities contributed to students’ success. It also indicated that teachers who received on-going grant support had greater success integrating technology into instructional practices. This study contributes to positive change by providing a tool that can be used by policy makers and staff developers to better improve the adoption of current and future technological innovations where resistance may occur.Although successful integration of technology into classrooms has proven beneficial to the learning process, little is yet known about how teachers respond to the introduction of technology and why some choose to use it while others do not. Using Sandoltz’ stages of teacher technology adoption as a framework, this multiple case study utilized historical data that captured the experiences of teachers in 2001-2002 to determine the process of teachers’ adoption of innovations into existing classroom practices. Participants included a purposive sample of eight 5 and 6-grade teachers from 3 schools. Data sources included teacher interviews, classroom observations, and video recordings of classroom practices for each teacher. Analysis included deconstruction by research question to identify patterns and emerging themes. The findings in this study showed that the voluntary nature of participation in technology integration activities contributed to students’ success. It also indicated that teachers who received on-going grant support had greater success integrating technology into instructional practices. This study contributes to positive change by providing a tool that can be used by policy makers and staff developers to better improve the adoption of current and future technological innovations where resistance may occur. The Impact of Technology on the Development of Expertise and Teacher Beliefs by Diane Robinson Penland MA, Northern Arizona University, 1984 BA, Arizona State University, 1981 Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Education Walden University May 2011