School-based Factors Influencing Integration Of Information And Communication Technologies In Teaching And Learning At Public Secondary Schools In Kwanza Sub-county, Kenya

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the school-based factors influencing integration of ICT in teaching and learning in public secondary schools in Kwanza sub-county. The study was guided by the following objectives: to examine the influence of school type, teachers’ skills, schools’ support, and students’ attitude on integration of ICT in teaching and learning in public secondary schools in Kwanza Sub-county. The study was guided by the model of ICT integration process. The study employed descriptive survey research design. The study targeted 43 principals, 826 teachers and 2,458 students. Purposive sampling technique was used to 13 select public secondary schools, 13 principals and 18 teachers that integrate ICT in teaching and learning. The 162 students were sampled by use of stratified random sampling as per gender. The research instruments were interview guides, questionnaires and observation checklists. Collected data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. The findings showed that school type played a crucial role in effective integration of teaching and learning in secondary school education. A majority of the principals (75%), teachers (60%) and students (55.1%) indicated that school type influence integration of teaching and learning to a large extent. Majority of the principals (91.7%) and teachers (66.7%), said that principals in their school encourage teachers to collaborate with their peers on integration of ICT in teaching and learning. A majority of the principals (75%) and most teachers (46.7%) stated that teachers’ skills were very beneficial for integration of ICT in teaching and learning. This implies that teachers consultation and engagement of each other to integrate of ICT in teaching and learning. The information from the study findings showed that 66.7 percent of the principals indicate they support in-service training for teachers on integration of ICT in teaching and learning. The study results also indicated that majority of the secondary schools did not offer students facilities to use during their free time thus influencing their positive attitude towards using ICT resources for learning. It was recommended that the Ministry of Education and other policy makers need to consider putting ICT as a core subject in the curriculum of secondary schools because it is an important element in vision 2030. Making ICT a core subject will help improve students’ attitude towards ICT because it will be as essential to them as any other subject they learn in school. Thus, the eagerness of students to learn ICT concepts will help realize effective integration of ICT in teaching and learning. The researcher suggested that further studies to be conducted comparing ICT integration in public and private schools in teaching and learning.