Barriers to the effective use of technology in education

As the world becomes more technological, particularly more so over the last decade, I think it is extremely important that this, and future generations of school children, get a chance to experience and utilise these modern gadgets before entering the world of further education (college and university), or full time employment. As the world develops, more technological jobs will pop-up and these students have to be prepared for a new era of demanding  jobs. The chance of an individual going through their entire life without having to use a computer on a regular basis is these days nothing short of impossible!

Even though all Comprehensive schools in Britain now provides ICT education as part of the curriculum, is one or two hours a week enough? Especially for those children whose family maybe cannot afford a computer at home. I know in the school that I work in, teachers of most subjects will have at least ten computers in their classrooms to blend in the use of written and technological learning. However, it has also been firmly established that just the introduction of ICT into schools does not, by itself, improve the quality of education. Due to ICT’s importance in the future of education, identifying the possible obstacles to the integration of these technologies into schools is an important step in improving the quality of teaching and learning.

There is also another argument that some teachers just do not feel the need to introduce computers or other modern tools into their lesson plans. Some preferring old fashioned ways of transferring information, others perhaps just not confident enough to do so. An article I read online pointed to: "Probably the most significant barrier the effective use of technology is the fact that most teachers are not prepared to use technology in the classroom" (Kovalchick, A. & Dawson, k. 2004). This is an opinion that I totally agree with, and have witnessed in my job. It is an argument that is touched upon in nearly all the books and articles that I have covered for this task. Below I have made a list of barriers that would effect the teacher and learner:

• Lack of confidence
• Lack of support from the school
• Lack of lesson time
• Lack of effective training
• Lack of technical support

Reference:

Cox, M., Preston, C., Cox, K., (1999) What Factors Support or Prevent Teachers from Using ICT in Their Classrooms, University of Sussex

Kovalchick,A. & Dawson,K. (2004) Education and Technology London: