The relationship between teachers’ training, personal sense of efficacy and ict integration: Analysing its strength and stability

In the literature it is still discussed whether teachers’ ICT training is in fact a critical factor for promoting technology integration in classrooms. For contributing to intensify the debate, a study was developed (a) to assess how teachers’ ICT training may or may not contribute to increase the level of ICT use in classrooms as well as teachers’ level of computers self-efficacy and (b) to identify the persistency/volatility of these possible increments. For this purpose, an in-service training program was developed for 50 teachers, who were asked to complete two self-report scales at three different moments. Teachers’ scores were compared and significant effects were found. ICT, Teachers & Education Digital technologies have become a central element of the structure of today’s society and being able to proficiently use them is considered a vital skill for any citizen of the 21-century. Its unquestionable potential in different sectors of professional activities makes technology a powerful tool for solving economic and societal problems and, ultimately, to increase the quality of human life conditions. The youngest, teenagers and children are their main adopters, their natural users. Nowadays, it is confirmed that Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) are widely used in European schools, however, it is difficult to ensure that they are being used with the innovative purposes that were expected (Sanchez & Hernandez, 2008). In Portugal, like in many other European countries, research studies have found that ICT has been poorly adopted in classroom activities; its use is fussy, not yet systematic, carefully planned and pedagogically oriented (Paiva, Paiva, & Fiolhais, 2002; Pedro, 2011a; Peralta & Costa, 2007). In order to understand and justify this reality regarding the use of ICT in schools’ practices, several studies have tried to identify its main barriers and obstacles. Many authors indicate that teachers’ competences and attitudes are crucial factors (Culp, Honey, & Mandinach, 2003; Hasselbring, Barron, & Risko, 2000; Lambert & Gong, 2010; Lawless & Pellegrino 2007, Norris, ICICTE 2012 Proceedings 344 Soloway, & Sullivan, 2002). If teachers do not feel comfortable in using ICT, these tools will hardly be envisaged as a useful resource and even less as a strategy for innovative teaching and learning activities. This study aims to contribute for developing and systematize some knowledge in the area of ICT-teacher training, focusing in the analysis of the influence of in-service training on teachers’ sense of efficacy as computer users and in their level of ICTintegration in their professional practices, both in a short term and in a medium-term perspective. For achieving this aim, an in-service training program was implemented, focusing on developing teachers’ technical-pedagogical competences on ‘Educational use of Moodle, Google Sites and other Web 2.0 tools’. Training effects on teachers’ professional practice were analysed previously and after teachers enrolled in the program. Research Background In Portugal, as in most European countries in the early '80s, the educational use of computers began to be explored in schools, mainly through the implementation of research projects. Thereafter, national programs were created by the Ministry of Education and in the last 5 years a significant amount of investment was put into technologically equipping schools, with updated hardware and software. However, the fact that there are now much more computers available in schools, as well as data projectors and interactive whiteboards, does not, in itself, guarantee an effective use of ICT in teaching and learning activities. According to a recent study supported by the Ministry of Education, ICT persists to be barely used by teachers in the classrooms (GEPE, 2008). In other countries, despite ICT-adoption in school activities appears to be settled, no significant changes could be found in teaching practices, teachercentred instructive activities still govern classrooms and the desirable renewal of teaching methods doesn’t seem to have occurred (Coll, Mauri, & Onrubia, 2009; Sanchez & Hernandez, 2008). For this reason, researchers have sought to identify its underlying causes. According to Wild (1996) the following factors need to be considered: (a) scarce opportunities for a regular use of computers, (b) lack of schools’ technological equipment, (c) teachers’ stress, (d) teachers’ reduced competences and confidence regarding ICT, (e ) lack of knowledge about the real impact of ICT in educational contexts, (f) few experiences with ICT in teachers’ pre-service education and continuous professional development; in all of these lies the reasons that lead to the reduced integration of ICT in classrooms. Several authors have argued that an effective integration of ICT in students’ learning activities will require their presence in teachers’ training. It is very difficult for teachers to be able to use ICT in a productive way and within a curriculum-oriented approach if they were not given the time to explore, understand and plan teaching activities and projects where such technologies do have an expression (Bravo & Fernandez, 2009; Coll, Mauri, & Onrubia, 2009; Costa & Peralta, 2007; Costa & Viseu, 2007; Munoz, 2009). However, Pratt (2002) has already advocated that even when engaged in training and claiming to possess the required skills, teachers still remained ICICTE 2012 Proceedings 345 presenting low levels of technology use in the classroom. Many authors have therefore stated that the integration of in-service training in the area appears as a factor with limited predictive power of an effective educational use of technology and that it was teachers’ beliefs and perceptions of the benefits of ICT use that could result in ICT-adoption (Ertmer, 2005; Vannatta & Fordham, 2004). As a psychological construct that presents to be a good predictor of human behaviour, self-efficacy belief is presented as people’s judgments of their capabilities to organize and execute courses of action required to attain a designated performance (Bandura, 1997). It’s a motivational and self-regulator construct based on one’s appreciation of which determines how environmental opportunities and restrictions are perceived and consequently what activity is initiated, how much effort is invested, and how long an individual will persevere through obstacles to competence (Tschannen-Moran & Hoy, 2007). As future-oriented belief that goes beyond individual present performance and skills, self-efficacy reveals a prospective nature (Bandura, 2005), in the extent that people tend to avoid engaging in a task where their sense of efficacy is low and enrol in activities that they belief they can do (Bandura, 1977; 1997). Within Bandura’s Social Cognitive Theory, the concept of teachers’ selfefficacy beliefs has been presented as individual teachers’ beliefs in their own abilities to plan, organize, and carry out activities required to attain given educational goals. Pedro (2011 b) refers to it as an intermediate variable of teachers’ conduct in the classroom. It has been proved that teachers perceived self-efficacy affects teachers’ professional goals and aspirations (Muijs & Reynolds, 2002), their involvement on planning instructional activities, enthusiasm in classroom (Schwazer & Schwitz, 2004) and attitudes toward innovation (Smylie, 1998).