Are teachers techno-optimists or techno-pessimists? A pilot comparative among teachers in Bolivia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Finland, Poland, Turkey, and Uruguay

Abstract

The aim of the article is to highlight the key elements related to the implementation of new technologies in education from the perspective of the opinions and experiences of educators in the field in Bolivia, Brazil, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Finland, Poland, Turkey, and Uruguay. The text compares issues related to attitudes towards the use of new media in education, experiences with different forms of e-learning, and the level of restrictions on the use of smartphones in school. These variables are juxtaposed with the self-assessment of digital competence and how cyberspace is used. The survey was conducted using a standardised survey questionnaire translated into the relevant national languages in the first half of 2019, and involved a sample of 873 teachers representing eight countries. On the basis of the pilot studies it was noted that: 1) Teachers from LAC and EU like to use digital media - this is a constant trend independent of geographical location; 2) Teachers note that new technologies are not always better than analogue didactic aids; 3) Teachers from selected countries (the Dominican Republic, Brazil, Turkey, and Uruguay) have much greater techno-optimism in themselves than teachers from Bolivia, Poland, Finland and Turkey in terms of the impact of ICT on student motivation and engagement; 4) In all countries teachers prefer free online courses (the different forms of e-learning are used most often by those in the Dominican Republic, and the least often in Bolivia and Poland); 5) In each country teachers who highly value their own digital competences and have a positive attitude towards new media use ICT much more actively; 6) There is also a global trend in that the extensive use of cyberspace (typical e-services) appears in combination with the extensive use of various forms of e-learning; 7) Teachers from Ecuador are most likely to want to ban the use of smartphones in schools. The most liberal approach in this respect is taken by the Uruguayans; 8) The knowledge of the conditions related to restricting the use of smartphones goes beyond the analyses related to the style of use and attitude towards new media. This article is the result of pilot studies conducted within the framework of the SMART ECOSYSTEM FOR LEARNING AND INCLUSION project carried out in selected Latin American, Caribbean (LAC) and European (EU) countries.

Potential Barriers to the Implementation of Digital Game-Based Learning in the Classroom: Pre-service Teachers’ Views

“…Even if teachers are skilled enough in technology and first-order barriers are resolved, they cannot still apply appropriate ICTs in their teaching due to the internal barriers, such as their views and attitudes towards ICTs in education based on their pedagogical beliefs (Fokides & Kostas, 2020 ). In this context, Tomczyk et al ( 2020 ) identified four categories of teachers’ attitudes towards new media: techno-optimist, techno-realist, techno-pessimist, and techno-ignorant. Techno-optimist teachers are enthusiastic and realize that new media could positively affect the quality and effectiveness of education.…”

Transprofessional competences of school teachers in the digital environment: education employers’ perspective

“…10). The majority of employers (26%) focused on a fear of new trends and technopessimism (Tomczyk et al, 2020) as the main barrier. They mentioned "a lack of confidence in their own digital abilities", the fact that "teachers are convinced that it is possible to teach effectively in the old way", "the teaching staff are committed to the traditional teaching tools" and "they seem unable to adapt flexibly to new conditions".…”

“…Before COVID-19, digital technologies found their way into educational practices in varying degrees but were not fully integrated (Tomczyk et al, 2020). The COVID-19 pandemic, however, has accelerated the integration process and given a spur to global discussions of the consequences of the shift towards digitalization (Rajab et al, 2020).…”

“…The digitalization of education, associated with the intensive integration of information and communication technologies into the educational process of the school, has led to the emergence of a need to develop transprofessional competences of school teachers and modifies the requirements for their training and lifelong learning. Teachers are expected to be mediators both in technology and the process of education (Tomczyk et al, 2020). Those altered requirements have an impact on teachers' individual accomplishments and evolution, active citizenship, societal engagement and operation in an information society (Fraile, 2018).…”

Impact of a One-Off Demonstration on the Use of ICT in the Teaching of Andragogy Students on Their Change of Attitude Towards the Use of ICT in Education

“…2020), however there are not many studies examining how to induce educators to change attitudes towards the use of ICT, in terms of understanding its true added value in teaching itself from a didactic point of view and increasing their motivation to use ICT in teaching. For example, Tomczyk et al (2020a) concluded based on research that teachers tend to be more of "techno-optimists". Hanafi et al (2017) addressed the reasons for the low motivation of university students to participate in the ICT use course in teaching (e.g., due to a lack of experience in ICT).…”