Perceived impact of information and communication technologies on learning and teaching

Abstract

The use of ICT in education sector is an important topic in most developing countries today as it is playing a central role in socio–economic development. There are many ICT initiatives in Sri Lankan education system over the past decade. This is the best time to evaluate those efforts for their effectiveness. Objectives of this research is to assess the impact of ICT on learning and teaching in secondary schools in Sri Lanka, to assess the current ICT usage in schools, to identify the drivers and barriers for achieving a greater impact of ICT on learning and teaching and to derive a set of recommendations, that would help future policy making. The chosen methodology is to ask questions from the key stakeholders of the school about how they perceive the impact of ICT on learning and teaching. Data collection in the study is based on three questionnaires. Respondents are the head of the school, teachers and students in grade 10 to12 classes. The study covered 80 schools among the Secondary Education Modernization Project funded schools. The research study found that there is no direct relationship between the computer usage of students and their perceived impact of ICT on learning. Both students and teachers attitude toward use of ICT for learning and teaching purposes are statistically significant and positively related to their perceived impact of ICT on learning and teaching. However, the relationship between ICT skills and their perceived impact of ICT on learning and teaching found only for students but not for teachers and principals. The government intervention and training are not related to both teachers and principal’s perceived impact of ICT on learning and teaching. Furthermore, research found that mere presence of ICT infrastructure in schools has not contributed students’ learning. KeyWords ICT, Impact on Learning, Impact on Teaching