Teachers’ Attitude towards ICT in English

Language Classroom

19th International Conference of NELTA

Lalitpur, Kathmandu, Nepal

Presenters

Md. Shahriar Shafiq

Researcher

Institute of Education and Research

Background of the study

Due to global change English and ICT have become major tools for education and

communication worldwide.

The use of those skills has been expanded day by day for the advancement of

education.

In recent years, those skills has been integrated in language learning classroom

where English is being taught through ICT equipment and it has been proved a

vital innovation (McDougald, 2009).

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Bangladesh government and many other national and international NGOs are

working to implement English language learning programs through ICT.

The outcomes of this innovation depend on the teachers since they are the key

personnel for educating the children.

It is required to measure teachers’ attitudes towards using ICT in English

language classes, so remedial actions can be taken if necessary.

Background of the study

Rationale of the study

Due to ICT related development in the field of education, countries regard ICT as a potential

tool for change and innovation in education, especially in the English language and so make

investments in ICT integration (Papanastasiou and Angeli, 2008; Kandasamy and Shah, 2013).

The government of Bangladesh is working on to implement multimedia classroom under A2I

project including other ICT facilities such as ‘Shikkhok Batayon’ (UNDP, 2011).

ICT does not have an educational value in itself, but it becomes precious when teachers use it in

the learning and teaching process (Hismanoglu, 2012).

A variety of substantial studies explored that not all teachers have been willing to introduce ICT

into their language classrooms (Mumtaz, 2000; Williams et al., 2000; Baylor and Ritchie,

2002).

(Continue…)

Rationale of the study

Rogers (1995) suggests in his theory of Diffusion of Innovation, technology

adopters’ perceptions are indispensable to the innovation-decision process.

Studies should focus on users’ attitudes toward ICT integration in the early

stages of technology implementation to provide support and training to the

teachers for ICT integration in their classrooms (Rogers, 1995; Hismanoglu,

2012).

The present study relies mainly on prospective English language teachers

because “the field of foreign language education has always been in the

forefront of the use of technology to facilitate the language education process”

(Lafford and Lafford, 1997).

Research Questions

1. To what extent teachers are ready for using ICT in English language Classrooms?

2. What is their attitude towards the use of ICT in the classrooms?

3. To what extent teachers use available ICT in the classrooms?

Methodology

Nature of the study: Mixed method approach

Respondents: 100 English language teachers of secondary level from EIA intervention schools

Sampling technique: Convenient sampling

Area: 10 upazilas from 5 out of 7 divisions in Bangladesh-

Kushtia Sadar and Gangni from Khulna division,

Jagannathpur and Sunamganj Sadar from Sylhet division,

Anwara and Ruma from Chittagong division,

Singra and Puthiya from Rajshahi division

Sutrapur and Mohammadpur from Dhaka division.

Sampling procedure (step by step)

5 divisions

2 districts from each division

1 upazila from each district

5 secondary schools form each upazila

2 teachers from each school

Data gathering instruments based on Research Questions

Research

Question No.

Technique Sample

size

Remarks

RQ 1 Questionnaire 100 100 questionnaires

RQ 2 Questionnaire

+ FGD

150 100 questionnaires

+ 5 FGDs

RQ 3 Questionnaire 100 100 questionnaires

Data Analysis Process

Findings

Teachers’ readiness varies on their age level. Young teachers (age level 20-

40) are comparatively ready for ICT use where older teachers (age level

41-60) have lack of readiness for using ICT.

Teachers showed satisfactory attitude towards the use of ICT.

There is a positive relation between teachers’ age and attitude towards

ICT. Young teachers showed comparatively more positive attitude than the

older.

Teachers’ attitude towards the use of ICT also varies according to their ICT

skills, teachers who have higher skills showed comparatively positive

attitudes than those have lower skill.

Teachers’ level of using available ICT equipment in ELT is satisfactory.

There is a strong positive relationship between attitude towards ICT use and

the actual level of use.

The level of ICT use is higher when the attitude towards the use of ICT is

comparatively positive.

Findings

Implications & Recommendations

This study gives a direction for policy makers to improve current policies regarding the use of ICT

for ELT, especially direction regarding teachers’ motivation for using ICT more in class.

This study also explored the need of ICT training for teachers regarding ELT. Therefore teachers

who have lack of ICT knowledge should provide training on ICT integration in English language

classrooms.

Moreover, the study creates awareness that the older generation need more attention when it comes

to getting familiar with new systems like ICT in Education.

In addition, the study also carries the implication that in order to enhance the use of ICT in the

classroom one must tackle the problem at the source.

For example, the teachers’ attitude problems should be addressed if the authorities hopes to solve

the problem of lack of ICT use in the classrooms since teachers’ attitude that determines their level

of use of ICT in the classroom.

References

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technology. Tech-Trends, 46(5), 34-38.

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Barnett, R. (1994). The Limits of Competence: Knowledge, Higher Education and Society. Open University Press, Buckingham.

Brown, D., & Warschauer, M. (2006). From the university to the Elementary classroom: Students’ experiences in learning to integrate

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Chan et al. (2007). Computer Education for Classroom Teaching. Malaysia: McGraw-Hill.

Davis, F. D. (1989). Perceived usefulness, perceived ease of use and user acceptance of information technology. MIS Quarterly,

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Promote L2 (English) among Non-native Pre-service English Teachers.

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