The impact of technology on primary school teachers

Abstract

Malta is currently undergoing major reforms in the education sector. These were mainly handled through the Education Act of 2006 and all various initiatives and developments taking place, the latest being the introduction of interactive whiteboards in all schools and the publication of the National Curriculum Framework. The aim of this study was to explore the impact that technology is having on the professional lives of primary school teachers. It aimed to see how teachers are reaching personally and collectively to the demands being made on them to become more technology literate and use technology as a medium of instruction. The results were gathered through focus group sessions in a church school. Two separate sessions took place, one with seven primary school teachers and the other one with the members of the Senior Management Team. The results gained revealed that teachers are infact being affected by technology’s introduction on various different levels both in their personal lives and in their professional career. Another significant finding was that technology has also impacted schools in different ways. Schools need to do their utmost to ensure that the teachers are given the appropriate training and are feeling comfortable while using different technological mediums. Schools and teachers should always work together and thus ensuring that the teachers are as comfortable as possible while including technology so that this is reflected in their teaching.