Information and Technology (ICT) usage in Al-Ula Schools
(An Application of Tearle’s Framework)
Keywords:
Information and communication technology (ICT), change implementation processes, education in Saudi Arabia, instructional uses of ICT, Al-Ula school district
Abstract
This paper discusses the findings from a recent study into the current status of and challenges to information and communications technology (ICT) usage in Al-Ula schools, as viewed from the perspective of teachers and principals within the schools. In this study, several themes that highlighted the status of and challenges to ICT use. Findings from the study showed that while Al-Ula schools were equipped with technology that was inadequate to serve the needs of teachers in the schools. Additionally, this technology was often difficult to maintain and repair due to a lack of technical support, and funding from the Ministry of Education was insufficient to equip the schools properly. Most teachers and principals likely needed more training in ICT use. There appeared to be an overall positive attitude toward technology use, yet the schools lacked a strategic plan for ICT implementation. These findings are discussed within the context of Tearle’s (2004) A Theoretical and Instrumental Framework for Implementing Change in ICT in Education, which suggests that ICT implementation is most effective when it takes the organization, the individual, practical and material artefacts, and the change process into account.
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2. Al-Asmari, A. M., &Rabb Khan, M. S. (2014). E-learning in Saudi Arabia: Past, present and future. Near and Middle Eastern Journal of Research in Education, 1–11. doi:10.5339/nmejre.2014.2
3. Albirini, A. (2006). Teachers’ attitudes toward information and communication technologies: The case of Syrian EFL teachers. Computers & Education, 47, 373–398. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2004.10.013
4. Albugami, S. (2016). Developing a strategic approach to ICT implementation in Saudi secondary schools(Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Salford, Salford, United Kingdom. Retrieved from http://usir.salford.ac.uk/id/eprint/40206/
5. Al-Hazmi, S. (2003). EFL teacher preparation programs in Saudi Arabia: Trends and challenges. Tesol Quarterly, 37, 341–344. doi:10.2307/3588509
6. Al Mofarreh, Y. I. (2016). Implementation of ICT policy in secondary schools in Saudi Arabia (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Wollongong, Wollongong, Australia. Retrieved from https://ro.uow.edu.au/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?referer=&httpsredir=1&article=5731&context=theses
7. Al Mulhim, E. (2014). The barriers to the use of ICT in teaching in Saudi Arabia: A review of literature. Universal Journal of Educational Research, 2, 487–493. doi:10.13189/ ujer.2014.020606
8. Alqarni, A. A. (2015). Educational technology in Saudi Arabia: A historical overview. International Journal of Education, Learning and Development, 3(8), 62–69. Retrieved from http://www.eajournals.org/wp-content/uploads/Educational-Technology-in-Saudi-Arabia.pdf
9. Alshammari, N. (2014). The use of technology in education to improve student’s reading skills in elementary schools. Saudi Arabia International Journal of Business and Social Science, 5(6), 69–71. Retrieved from http://www.ijbssnet.com/journals/vol_5_no_6_may_2014/6.pdf
10. Alwani, A. E. S., &Soomro, S. (2010). Barriers to effective use of information technology in science education at Yanbu Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. In S Soomro (Ed.), E-learning experiences and future (pp. 35–46). Rijeka, Croatia: In Tech. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/221908579_Barriers_to_Effective_use_of_Information_Technology_in_Science_Education_at_Yanbu_Kingdom_of_Saudi_Arabia
11. Asan, A. (2003). Computer technology awareness by elementary school teachers: A case study from Turkey. Journal of Information Technology Education: Research, 2, 153–164. doi:10.28945/319
12. Barriball, K. L., & While, A. (1994). Collecting data using a semi‐structured interview: A discussion paper. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 19, 328–335. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2648.1994.tb01088.x
13. British Educational Communications and Technology Agency (BECTA). (2004). A review of the research literature on barriers to the uptake of ICT by teachers. Retrieved from
14. http://dera.ioe.ac.uk/1603/1/becta_2004_barrierstouptake_litrev.pdf
15. Burnard, P. (1991). A method of analysing interview transcripts in qualitative research. Nurse Education Today, 11, 461–466. doi:10.1016/0260-6917(91)90009-y
16. Crotty, M. (1998). The foundations of social research: Meaning and perspective in the
17. research process. London, England: Sage.
18. Edwyn, J. (2001). Learning to change: ICT in schools. Schooling for tomorrow: Education and skills. Paris, France: OECE.
19. Ertmer, P. A., Ottenbreit-Leftwich, A. T., Sadik, O., Sendurur, E., & Sendurur, P. (2012). Teacher beliefs and technology integration practices: A critical relationship. Computers & Education, 59, 423–435. Retrieved from10.1016/j.compedu.2012.02.001
20. Etikan, I., Alkassim, R., &Abubakar, S. (2016). Comparision of snowball sampling and sequential sampling technique. Biometrics & Biostatistics International Journal, 3(1), 1-2.
21. Golafshani, N. (2003). Understanding reliability and validity in qualitative research. The
22. Qualitative Report, 8, 597–606. Retrieved from https://nsuworks.nova.edu/tqr/vol8/iss4/6/
23. Hampton, K., & Wellman, B. (2003). Neighboring in Netville: How the Internet supports community and social capital in a wired suburb. City & Community, 2(4), 277–311. doi:10.1046/j.1535-6841.2003.00057.x
24. Howley, A., Wood, L., & Hough, B. (2011). Rural elementary school teachers’ technology integration. Journal of Research in Rural Education, 26(9), 1–13.Retrieved from http://jrre.vmhost.psu.edu/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/26-9.pdf
25. Jamsheed, M. (2015). A look back at the discovery that changed the Kingdom. Saudi Aramco. Dimension International,Summer, 2–5.
26. Retrieved from https://imgsrv2.aramcoexpats.com/pipeline/magazines/pdf_dimensions-international-summer-2015-part2-p4-7.pdf
27. Kalonde, G. (2017). Technology use in rural schools: A study of a rural high school trying to use iPads in the classroom. Rural Educator, 38(3), 27–38. Retrieved from http://epubs.library.msstate.edu/index.php/ruraleducator/article/view/330/401
28. Khan, M. S. H., Hasan, M., & Clement, C. K. (2012). Barriers to the introduction of ICT into education in developing countries: The example of Bangladesh. International Journal of Instruction, 5(2), 61–80. Retrieved from https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED533790.pdf
29. King, K. P. (2002). Educational technology professional development as transformative learning opportunities. Computers & Education, 39(3), 283–297. doi:10.1016/S0360-1315(02)00073-8
30. Maslow, A. H. (1943). A theory of human motivation. Psychological review, 50(4), 370.
31. Mathers, N., Fox, N., &Hunn, A. (2007). Surveys and questionnaires. Nottingham and Sheffield, England: The NIHR RDS for the East Midlands/Yorkshire & the Humber. Retrieved from https://www.rds-yh.nihr.ac.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/05/12_Surveys_and_Questionnaires_Revision_2009.pdf
32. Ministry of Education, Saudi Arabia. (n.d.). Education and Vision 2030. Retrieved from https://www.moe.gov.sa/en/Pages/Vision2030.aspx
33. Ministry of Education, Saudi Arabia. (2019). Home. Retrieved from https://www.moe.gov.sa/en/Pages/default.aspx
34. Ministry of Higher Education, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. (2006). Saudi Arabian cultural mission to the U.S.A. Washington, DC: Saudi Arabian Cultural Mission to the U.S.A.
35. Mishra, P., & Koehler, M. J. (2006). Technological pedagogical content knowledge: A framework for teacher knowledge. Teachers College Record, 108, 1017–1054. Retrieved from http://one2oneheights.pbworks.com/f/MISHRA_PUNYA.pdf
36. National Center for e-Learning and Distance Learning. (2019). About us. Retrieved from http://www.elc.edu.sa/?q=en/aboutus
37. National Education Association (2019). Professional development. Retrieved from http://www.nea.org/home/30998.htm.
38. Oyaid, A. (2009). Education policy in Saudi Arabia and its relation to secondary school teachers’ ICT use, perceptions, and views of the future of ICT in education (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). University of Exeter, Exeter, England. Retrieved from https://ore.exeter.ac.uk/repository/bitstream/handle/10036/69537/OyaidA.doc.pdf?sequence=2
39. Palinkas, L. A., Horwitz, S. M., Green, C. A., Wisdom, J. P., Duan, N., &Hoagwood, K. (2015). Purposeful sampling for qualitative data collection and analysis in mixed method implementation research. Administration and Policy in Mental Health, 42(5), 533–544.
40. Pall, A. S. &Batra, R. (2016). Adoption of ICT in instructional setup of Indian school education sector. GianJyoti Journal, 6(2), 76–87. Retrieved from https://www.gjimt.ac.in/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/Roopali_Amanpartap_Adoption-of-ICT-in-Instructional-Setup-of-Indian-School-Education-Sector.pdf
41. Patton, M. Q. (2002). Qualitative evaluation and research methods (3rd ed.). Thousand
42. Oaks, CA: Sage.
43. Pelgrum, W. J. (2001). Obstacles to the integration of ICT in education: Results from a worldwide educational assessment. Computers & Education, 37, 163–178. doi:10.1016/s0360-1315(01)00045-8
44. Poggenpoel, M., &Myburgh, C. (2003). The researcher as research instrument in
45. educational research: A possible threat to trustworthiness? Education, 124(2), 418–421, 320. Retrieved from https://www.questia.com/library/journal/1G1-112480018/the-researcher-as-research-instrument-in-educational
46. Saudi Vision 2030, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. (2019). Home. Retrieved from https://vision2030.gov.sa/en/node
47. Sundeen, T. H., &Sundeen, D. M. (2013). Instructional technology for rural schools: Access and acquisition. Rural Special Education Quarterly, 32(2), 8–14. doi:10.1177/875687051303200203
48. Tearle, P. (2004). A theoretical and instrumental framework for implementing change in ICT in education. Cambridge Journal of Education, 34, 331–351. doi:10.1080/0305764042000 289956
49. Tondeur, J., van Keer, H., van Braak, J., &Valcke, M. (2008). ICT integration in the classroom: Challenging the potential of a school policy. Computers & Education, 51, 212–223. doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2007.05.003
50. United States Department of Education. (2018). Future ready schools: Building technology infrastructure for learning. Washington, DC: Office of Educational Technology, Department of Education. Retrieved from https://tech.ed.gov/futureready/infrastructure/
51. Vareberg, K. R. (2016). It’s easy until it’s not: Elements contributing to rural teachers’ technology use (Unpublished master’s thesis). North Dakota State University, Fargo, North Dakota. Retrieved from https://library.ndsu.edu/ir/bitstream/handle/10365/27967/It%27s%20Easy%20Until%20It%27s%20Not%20Elements%20Contributing%20to%20Rural%20Teachers%27%20Technology%20Use.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y
52. Zhao, Y. &Cziko, G. A. (2001) Teacher adoption of technology: a perceptual control theory
perspective, Journal for Technology and Teacher Education, 9(1), 5-30.
Published
2021-05-17
How to Cite
Dr. Fahad Albalawi. (2021). Information and Technology (ICT) usage in Al-Ula Schools: (An Application of Tearle’s Framework). Journal of Arts, Literature, Humanities and Social Sciences, (67), 334-347. https://doi.org/10.33193/JALHSS.67.2021.493
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