Ms. Gonzalez, librarian/media specialist of an urban high school, is asked to prepare a presentation to explain the results of her study of the current status of technology use to a panel of campus stakeholders. The goal of the presentation is to inform the panel of stakeholders so they can develop a plan to further implement the use of technology as a teaching and learning tool on campus.
TopThe Case
As the librarian/media specialist at Hamilton High School, Ms. Gonzalez is responsible for the upkeep and checking-out of 10 and a half computer carts, as well as oversee a computer lab within the library. She is asked by the school principal to present the results of her study of the current status of technology use to a group of stakeholders which includes district administrators, district IT staff, PTO members, and campus administrators. The goal of the presentation is to present the results and use the information as a basis to develop a technology plan that will increase the use of technology as a teaching and learning tool. As a school leader, Ms. Gonzalez will share the survey results with the leadership team and the administration for further review.
After a brief welcome and introduction, Ms. Gonzalez focuses on the core of her presentation as follows:
Sample
The sample for this current study consists of the 43 teachers who used the computer carts and/or computer lab during the Fall semester. Of the 154 teachers on the campus, 43 teachers – 28% of the staff – used computer technology at least once during the Fall Semester. The number of actual usage ranged from two teachers who used computers 25 times, to four teachers who only used computers once. Of the 43 teachers who used computer technology, 32 (74%) responded to the technology usage survey.
Methodology
The first data collected for this study came from the teacher sign-up forms located in the library. Teachers who want to use either a computer cart or the computer lab must sign up on the check out binder located on the counter. The forms are available for two week periods, and teachers sign-up accordingly. After gathering this data, a survey was sent out to the 43 teachers via e-mail (See Appendix A). An incentive of a homemade treat was offered to anyone who responded to the survey. Teachers then responded either electronically or in person. The researcher attempted to get additional participation by visiting room by room and encouraging participation. Fifteen of the thirty-two respondents participated without any prompting other than the initial e-mail message.
Results
The subject area results are in Figure 1.
Looking at the chart we can see that the majority of teachers who use computer technology are the English Teachers with 17 out of the 32 surveyed teachers (see Appendix B for raw data). All other subject areas fell between 1 and 5. As the media specialist, Ms. Gonzalez is a member of the English Department, yet she does not feel this is the reason more English teachers are using the computers. This clearly points out the need to expand computer usage to other subject areas.
Teacher Experience Results
These results (Table 1.) are very interesting because the number of new teachers and experienced teachers is very similar. As is pointed out in the literature, it is important to note that not all younger teachers–as digital natives–are automatically more proficient with technology. Another point made in the literature is that teacher preparation programs will need to be modified in order to prepare future teachers to successfully integrate technology into the classroom. This is also very interesting when looking at teacher-technology confidence levels. Of the three who responded with so-so for their confidence level, two possess the 1 to 3 years of teaching experience and only 1 was in the 10 or more years category.
Table 1.| 1-3 years | 12 |
| 4-6 years | 5 |
| 7-9 years | 6 |
| 10 or more years | 9 |