Secondary Science Teachers’ Use of Technology in the Classroom during Their First 5 Years

Abstract

This study examined the technology use of beginning secondary science teachers and explored factors facilitating or inhibiting their use of technology. The researchers collected and analyzed interviews and observational data from 95 teachers over a 5-year period. The results show that teachers used PowerPoint the most and other software the least over time. This pattern was consistent over the 5 years of observation, increasing in frequency of usage only slightly each year. The use of PowerPoint was statistically significant when compared to the use of lecture and procedural laboratories. One-way ANOVAs yielded several statistically significant results, in that induction treatments, teacher’s gender, and SES populations were significantly correlated to the use of technology. This study urges that the value of technology used in science classrooms should be redefined to enhance inquiry-based science teaching and learning.

Keywords:

• beginning secondary science teachers
• technology usage
• teaching practices