Rationale to the Integration of ICT into Teaching

In our present society, Information and Communications Technology has become an integral and accepted part of everyday life for many people. Technology is increasing in importance in people’s lives. Technology is pervasive and is driving changes on a global level in communications, economics, business enterprise and everyday living. Therefore, education cannot afford to take a back seat to the rest of the societal sectors. On the contrary, it is  job of educators to prepare students to take the lead in future markets (School Board of Broward County Curriculum and Instruction/Student Support Education Technology Services, 2003).

We no longer live in a world in which information is scarce, and the teacher’s role is to hand deliver content to children. Overwhelmed by information from a wealth of sources, students desperately need the skills to create new knowledge, not just consume the old. Problems never come neatly packaged, defined-in-advance, and amenable to the rote application of familiar strategies— except in school. The old certainties of a world defined by four classroom walls and impermeable boundaries have disappeared forever, replaced by global interdependencies and complex systems that require flexibility, responsiveness, and imagination (Jacobsen, Clifford, & Friesen, 2002). In that kind of world, the schooling needed is schooling where the learners   actively constructing instead of just an expert instructing (Goldman-Segall in Jacobsen, Clifford, & Friesen, 2002).

The integration of ICT into teaching benefits both student’s presence and the future. The student’s presence regards to academic achievement in formal school. Student’s future regards to entering the world of job after leaving formal school.

ICT Integrated Teaching Improves Students’ Academic Achievement

The technology changes the behavior of people particularly young learners. Children today are different. They study, work, write, and interact with each other in ways that are very different from the ways that we did growing up. They read blogs rather than newspapers. They often meet each other online before they meet in person. They probably don’t even know what a library card looks like, much less have one; and if they do, they’ve probably never used it. They get their music online—often for free, illegally—rather than buying it in record stores. They’re more likely to send an instant message than to pick up the telephone to arrange a date later in the afternoon. They adopt and pal round with virtual Neopets online instead of pound puppies. And they’re connected to one another by a common culture. Major aspects of their lives—social interactions, friendships, civic activities—are mediated by digital technologies. And they’ve never known any other way of life (Palfrey & Gasser, 2008).

Over the past decade, many articles have appeared in popular and educational journals providing anecdotal evidence of changes that educational technology can make in schools (Baylor & Ritchie, 2002). Technology can help schools achieve such desirable outcomes as improved test scores, reduced failure rates, lower absenteeism, fewer student withdrawals, increased graduation rates, improved job placement rates, and overall improvement in motivation (Duffy & Jonassen, 2005; Coffey, 2012; Kleiman, 2000; Saglam & Sert, 2012).

Hanover Research (2014) as quoting a 2009 report by the State Educational Technology Directors Association (SETDA), found that incorporating technological tools in the classroom led to “positive academic results” and increased technological literacy for students. The study notes that student performance improved across a number of academic content areas, including mathematics, science, reading, and writing.

In her action research study, Souter Melissa (2015) compares the effects of technology-enhanced algebra instruction and traditional algebra instruction in terms of student academic achievement, student motivation, and student attitude towards algebra. She found that integrating technology into the mathematics classroom can increase student achievement, increase student motivation, and foster positive student attitudes. However she also stated that seeing positive results and having positive beliefs concerning using technology do not guarantee immediate technology integration.

ICT Integrated-Teaching Equips Student Entering World of Job of 21st Century

During the past decade there has been an exponential growth in the use of communication and information technology that has brought pervasive impacts on society. The communication and information age has progressed in ways never used before in society, work environments, institutions and people’s lives through the use of mediums such as laptops, iPhones and iPods. The information age has led to an increase in the use of technology ithin all spheres of society, resulting in education institutions mainstreaming programmes which prepare learners to be compatible with the use of technology into their curriculum (Joseph, 2006).

Corporations have become multinational and their workers can be anyplace and work at any time. Fast connections and standardized software link these corporations with workers wherever they are, and some members of this workforce live in parts of the world where salaries are low and benefits are unheard of.  Technology is driving force that created this environment. Technology makes people in remote locations viable employee who are eager to have the jobs. Companies use technology to become lean and efficient. They can track their goods and services from point of origin to delivery and at every step along the way. They know what they need at any moment and can make adjustments to the supply flow in real time using technology from distance. They trim expenses including worker costs (Solomon & Schrum, 2007).

The continuing evolvement of technology in fact continues to impact the evolvement of the jobs. Schrum & Levin (2009) stated that the kinds of work opportunities our students will have in the 21st century will continue to evolve. Some jobs available today will disappear altogether, and other as yet to be imagined jobs will emerge. We know there will continue to be jobs in the service sector because many of these types of jobs cannot be outsourced, but nearly all service-producing jobs already require at least some computer skills.

It is clear, from explanation above, that there is competition in search for job. Only those with skills that fit the recent nature of jobs will win the competition. What does it mean for teaching? It is obvious that educators through their teaching have to equip the young people with new skills which are often referred to as 21st skills. Because the main purpose of education is to prepare the young learners to enter the world of work. In fact, technological-enhanced teaching can equip students with skills essential for work and life in a 21st century global society (The Nellie Mae Education Foundation, 2011).

It's Time for ICT Integration into Teaching

Though some people may be critical and pessimistic about the presence of technology because of negative effects it may causes, it has promising role on the life of society. Though some people may reject the technological determinism, to some degree, it is undeniable that technology does determine and shape our society. It is hardly to deny that computer has changed the nature of job and work. The telephone has led to decline of letter writing, but the internet has changed the nature of interpersonal communication again, leaving written records unlike the telephone (Dusek, 2006).  

Information and Communication Technology (ICT) henceforth, as part of Technology has not only changed and shaped the society but also has transformed the world. It has broken the limitation of time and place. We now live in a world where everyone is connected to each other. By ICT, the social interaction is also affected by this transformation. ICT have permeated nearly every facet of society (Leng, 2008). Business and personal boundaries start to convergence. Besides, face to face communication have transformed to virtual communication. People in certain place in this world can know soon what happened in the other part of the world. Today, through the power of ICT, people can watch the history that it is.

ICT offers a deal of indulgences particularly to young learners. They are familiar with ICT.  Products of ICT such as internet, computers, laptop, cell phone, iPhone, iPad, and other gadgets are at their hands. These artifacts expose to them the varied digital experiences. These products as called social media have significantly influenced their interpersonal relationship. They let not a single day pass without being with them because they offer pleasures and immersion. They even sometime depend so much on them. They enjoyed very much being connected to others through this social media. They can spend some hours just playing online game or just surfing or goggling.

A series of surveys and reports have provided evidence of how people are using technologies, particularly social software and web 2.0, for communication and social networking and for creating and sharing a wide range of digital artifacts (Attwell & Hughes, 2010). Attwell et al. (2010) draw attention to the surveys conducted by Lenhart and Madden in America in 2005 and Ewan McIntosh in UK in 2008. Lenhart and Madden found that 56 % of young people in America were using computers for creative activities, writing and posting to the internet, mixing and constructing multimedia and developing their own content. Twelve to 17-year-olds look to web tools to share what they think and do online. One in five who use the net said that they used other people’s images, audio or text to help make their own creations. McIntosh found that the main use of the net by young people, by far, is for learning: 57 % use the net for homework, saying it provides more information than books; 15 % use it for learning that is ‘not school’; 40 per cent use it to stay in touch with friends; and 9 % for entertainment such as YouTube.

And yet this constant exposure to digital experiences has, in fact, changed how these young learners receive process and use the information. Consequently, the way they learn, interact, and communicate, when and where have also changed (NSW Department of Education and Training, 2010). We should not expect that the students are able to comfortably sit listening to teacher explaining the lesson as we did when we were young learners. Their attention soon gets distracted. Instead of taking notes on the lesson, they will approach us asking to send the teaching material to their email. Besides, they will ask permission to shoot the PPT using their cell phone camera. We should not expect young learners who did not submit the homework would not give reason that seems to us “nonsense”. They would find excuses from, “I have finished it but I forget to bring it” to simple one, “I forget to do it”. All these excuses signal that they do not get engaged into the process of teaching and learning. The way we conduct the teaching material or the material itself does not trigger their curiosity.

Reflecting on the facts above, there is a need for teachers to adopt a new approach in teaching that is able to engage the young learners to be active participants. This new approach is the integration of ICT into teaching.  The change of attitudes of the young learner is not the only reason for the integration of technology into teaching and learning, but also there is abundant anecdotal evidence of the successful use of ICT in the classroom. Technology can help schools achieve such desirable outcomes as improved test scores, reduced failure rates, lower absenteeism, fewer student withdrawals, increased graduation rates, improved job placement rates, and overall improvement in motivation (Kent & McNergney, 2005)

Unfortunately, most of the teachers on the other hand are not easy with ICT. They have poor confidence in using technology as medium of teching content delivery. They are aware of the positive effect on ICT on their teaching (Saglam & Sert, 2012). And yet they are reluctant and not comfortable to use it (Jacobsen, Clifford, & Friesen, 2002). This teacher’s reluctance is caused by many reasons. Understanding and using ICT into teaching and learning require that a certain amount of time be dedicated to the preparation and planning activities. This time is often difficult to come by because teachers are facing many other works to do. Using ICT can require teachers to sacrifice their comfortable style of delivery. Incorporating new style of delivery involves certain risk of losing self-confidence in front of the student who may be better and know more than they do.