Changing perceptions of ICT at KS3 : a critical investigation using activity theory.

This study examined the pedagogy of ICT and the aim of the research was to explore teachers’ perceptions of ICT capability and whether their practice in the classroom matched their personal constructs. This is particularly pertinent given the current environment of curriculum change in Wales. Cultural Historical Activity Theory (CHAT) was used as an analytical framework within this study. The use of this tool has enabled different dimensions within the case studies to be recognised and discussed. The use of the activity settings over time has allowed a fourth dimension to be added to the analysis and to examine how the teachers in the case study have managed their recognition of the emergent contradictions. The use of the activity setting to analyse similar settings from different viewpoints has prompted the use of CHAT as a tool to model likely contradictions which may emerge from the introduction of any new curriculum. The use of CHAT in an educational setting in this way has built on the use of Activity Theory to analyse the workplace activity in highlighting change and participant’s reaction to that change. Two continuums emerged, one concerning how ICT capability was perceived in terms of skills used, with the metacognitive skills at one end and the tools of specific software applications at the other. The other continuum was concerned with the pedagogy of ICT. It emerged that the schools employed different pedagogical strategies which resulted in the use of different pedagogical tools by the teachers within the study. The pedagogical continuum ranged from a mechanistic rigid pedagogy to one of facilitation with pupils creating opportunities for knowledge construction. These variations have implications for the pedagogy of any new computing curriculum which may be introduced and the need for continued professional development to enable effective teaching of that new curriculum.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

phd

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

doctoral

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Wales Trinity Saint David

Year dc:date.issued

2016

Author dc:creator

• Barnes, Janine

• LB Theori ac arfer addysg

Dc Identifier Grantnumber

UWTSD

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:590