ASSESSING THE ATTITUDE OF TEACHER EDUCATORS TOWARDS THE INTEGRATION OF INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY (ICT) IN TEACHING LEARNING PROCESS

The purpose of the present study is to assess the attitude of teacher educators in relation to gender, qualification and experience towards the integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in teaching learning process. The survey was conducted in 10 Government and Private Teacher Education Institutions of Kashmir Division (UT of J&K, India). Descriptive survey method was employed for the present investigation. Stratified sampling technique was used to select the sample of 100 teacher educators teaching in government and private institutions. Data collection technique employed in this present study was Attitude Scale towards Information Technology for Teachers (ASTITT-IN) by Nasrin and Islahi (2012). The data analysis was performed using descriptive statistics such as Mean, Standard Deviation, percentage and t-test. The study reveals that there was no significant difference in the attitudes between male and female teacher educators. However, a notable distinction emerged in the attitudes of teacher educators from government and private institutions was that the teacher educators from government institutions were found to possess higher level of favourable attitude towards ICT. The study also delved into the impact of professional experience on teacher educators' attitudes towards ICT integration and the findings indicate a noticeable difference based on the participants' experience levels. A small subset of educators exhibited a highly positive attitude towards ICT integration while the majority displayed a generally positive orientation. This study contributes to the existing literature by providing insights into the nuanced perspectives of teacher educators in both government and private institutions regarding ICT integration. The identified variations based on institutional affiliation and experience levels underscore the need for tailored strategies and interventions to foster a more widespread positive attitude towards the incorporation of ICT tools in the education sector and prepare teachers to teach effectively with technology.