Instructors' Perspectives and Use of ICT in Two Teacher Education Programs

Abstract

ICT have penetrated every corner of 21^st century life. This paper presents findings from a study conducted at two teacher education programs, one in Canada and the other in Australia. The two universities at the center of this research offer a range of programs for teacher preparation and similarly emphasize ICT integration in their teacher education programs, which include specific courses in ICT as well as integrated courses in other subject areas that use ICT as part of the pedagogy of the course. A questionnaire and interviews were used in data collection and findings indicate that most instructors tended to perceive ICT as something important for teacher education programs, although to various degrees. Reasons for not making full use of ICT in their own teaching included lack of knowledge on how to effectively integrate ICT in their teaching, lack of training in ICT use and a busy working schedule that kept them from learning how to use new tools and techniques. Implications for programming in teacher education are discussed.