Information and communication technologies in early childhood education teacher training colleges: a case of Igembe districts, Meru county - Kenya
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Date
2014-09-10
Authors
Gatuyu, Cosmus M.
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Abstract
The government has undertaken an ambitious programme to introduce laptops for all
children joining class one in all public government schools in the country beginning
the year 2014. This policy has been reinforced by a government budget allocation for
the programme. This programme, however noble, can only succeed- if the teachers
within the schools have adequate skills and knowledge on how to use Information and
Communication Technologies in their instruction to ensure the children reap
maximwn benefits. Children should be prepared on how to use the computers from
pre-school so that they can fruitfully make use of the government computers once
they join mainstream schooling. Lack of teachers with the correct skills in lCT usage
in instruction will greatly affect the success of introduction of computer programme in
primary schools. This research aims to establish the availability and use of
Information and Communication Technologies in Early Childhood Teacher training
colleges within 1gembe Districts. The researcher aimed to establish the availability
and use of lCTs in the Districts, factors influencing their use, challenges and possibly
solutions to challenges in the use of lCTs in ECDE colleges. The study was based on
Banduras Social Learning Theory and the Self-efficacy Theory. The researcher
adopted a descriptive survey design to carry out the research. The population for this
research were the ECDE teacher training colleges within 1gembe District
encompassing the teacher trainers (tutors) and student teachers. Random sampling
was used to select the sample to avoid bias. A questionnaire and an observation
schedule were the main data collection tools used for this study to test the availability
and use of lCTs in the ECDE colleges. The data collection instruments were piloted
before they were used in the field to attest their validity and reliability. Data was
collected from 30% of the population with a 98% return rate of the questionnaires.
The data was collected, analysed, tabulated, classified and presented using frequency
distribution tables, bar graphs, charts and summary paragraphs. Statistical Package for
Social Sciences (SPSS) was used to prepare data for analysis. T -test and Chi-square
test were used to test the data collected to ensure their credibility. From the research
findings, there are very few lCTs available in the ECD TTCs and the few available
are inadequate. Tutors and students too have limited ways in which they use lCTs.
Availability of lCTs and limited knowledge of the lCTs are among the many factors
hindering use ofICT in the colleges. The researcher has made conclusions from data
collected that negative attitudes by teachers and lack of government intervention are
among factors affecting the use ofICTs in the colleges. The researcher has proposed a
raft of measures to ensure the use of lCTs in colleges such as attitude changes by all
stakeholders, government interventions such as coming up with an appropriate
curriculum to help train teachers in lCT, tax incentives to make the lCTs affordable,
collaboration with development partners and supervision among others. All these will
be geared to having lCT savvy teachers and the same knowledge, skills and attitudes
will eventually be transferred to the children in the ECD centres before they transition
to mainstream schooling.
Description
Department of Early Childhood Studies, 77p. 2014, LB 1028.46 .G3