Understanding Teacher Uses of Technology in the Asia Pacific region

• In Event: Is the tone changing on uses of technology in education? The 2023 GEM report one year on

Proposal

Although digital literacy is increasing globally, equitable access to educational technologies within the education sector remains inconsistent for both teachers and their students. Technology is purported to play an important role in teacher training, fostering knowledge, innovative instructional practices, and supporting the development of skills that students require for labour market participation and mobility (El-Serafy, Adam & Hassler, 2022). The pandemic has accelerated expectations for remote and digital modalities to be employed to support learning and student wellbeing (Global Education Evidence Advisory Panel, 2022), despite a lack of evidence linking technology with improved learning outcomes

Despite research highlighting the expanding role of educational technology in the education sector (Hennessy et al 2022), data from the Teaching and Learning International Survey shows that teachers’ understanding of integrating technology into teaching and learning practice remains limited (OECD, 2020 as cited in Dabrowski et al., 2022). Yet, analysis of the Pacific Islands Literacy and Numeracy Assessment found that teacher professional development in ICT was a significant predictor of student learning outcomes in grade 4 and 6. Often, educators bear the burden of enacting ICT policies into classroom practice, without the adequate resources and training to do so. There has been little research examining the pressures facing educators as they struggle to respond to technological advances in education settings. Based on two studies conducted for the Southeast Asia and Pacific regional UNESCO GEM reports (Nietschke & Dabrowski, 2023; Dabrowski et al., in press), this session presents an analysis of technology integration in the classroom, with a focus on the challenges and enablers impacting teachers in Lao PDR, Palau, Samoa, the Solomon Islands, and Vanuatu. The session will form part of a broader panel reflecting on the 2023 and 2024 GEM Report findings.

Based on research with education stakeholders involved in the implementation of educational technologies in schools and higher education settings in the countries outlined above, several key findings emerge. Although education policies and practices designed to improve the digital literacy of students have expanded, teachers appear to have little support or time to develop their own schools, and report a general lack of preparedness to use technology. Although teachers are expected to learn about and engage with pedagogies and practices that incorporate educational technologies, poor infrastructure limit the opportunities to apply these new skills in the classroom. Finally, donor-driven investments in educational technologies appear to be driving education reform in parts of the Asia Pacific region, often at great cost and without adequate evidence to support their implementation. The findings demonstrate an ongoing need to support teachers in the Asia Pacific to integrate technology into their practice in meaningful ways to support student learning and wellbeing.

Authors

• Yung Nietschke, Australian Council for Educational Research

• Anna Dabrowski, Australian Council for Educational Research