Preschool Teachers’ Attitudes toward Internet Applications for Professional Development in Taiwan

Abstract

This study focuses on preschool teachers' attitudes toward integrated Internet applications for professional development by a survey in Taiwan. The researcher developed a survey questionnaire consisting of five factors: usefulness, effectiveness, behavioral intention, Internet connection, and professional competence. This study analyzed the survey data from Taiwan's preschool teachers' attitudes through structural equation modeling. The findings show that preschool teachers feel positively toward Internet innovative value to improve their pedagogical practices. Their considerations on usefulness, effectiveness, and behavioral intention using the Internet positively influence their attitudes toward Internet-based professional interactions and abilities. The researcher discussed certain implications of the findings. An enhanced understanding of teacher views toward Internet applications in preschools provides Internet-related implementation and references for innovations and high-quality early childhood professional development.

Preschool Teachers’ Perception of the Application of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in Taiwan

“…The term Information Communication Technology (ICT) is broadly known as a form of technology used for creating, displaying, storing, manipulating, and exchanging information [12][13][14]. In terms of the use of ICT as a teaching and learning tool in early childhood education, Chen [15] observes that "most Taiwanese preschool teachers ignore the advantages of Internet-based applications because their work mainly involves caring for young children; as a result, they have neither the time nor energy to access the Internet to improve their professional development" (p. 2672). Especially, the Early Childhood Education and Care Act consolidated the education and care of young children ages 2-6 under a single administrative system since 2012 in Taiwan.…”

“…In response to these challenges, since teachers are the ultimate users of ICT in an educational context, their perspective has a significant impact on the success of ICT-enhanced education. Yet, despite the extensive literature that is related to using ICT in the learning environment, it is apparent that there are few studies based on determining preschool teachers' attitude toward implementing ICT in the classroom [15,16]. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate preschool teachers' perception of the application of ICT in Taiwan. The research design and the mechanisms used to collect and analyze the data are described in Section 3 of this paper and Section 4 contains the results of the study, while Section 5 is devoted to a discussion of those results and some conclusions.…”

Examining preschool teacher’s use of social media in terms of their professional development

“…Demirezen and Alakurt (2022) also noted that adopting the correct technology in learning environments can make learning simpler and that it is critical for teachers to better themselves in this regard. According to Masoumi (2021) and Chen (2016), developing teachers' technological-pedagogical knowledge and abilities is critical for the efficient implementation of the curriculum. Zinskie and Griffin (2023) stressed that teachers need to know the necessary privacy rules when using social media, what are the circumtances of appropriate and inappropriate use and the professional risks associated with the improper uses.…”

“…Marklund (2015) stated that computer technologies and tablets have taken a place in children's lives, so they should be included in education too. Preschool teachers have recently been using many online applications as educational tools (Chen, 2016). It is seen that applications such as Instagram, Facebook, Twitter and Whatsapp are frequently used (Avcı, 2020).…”

A Literature Review on the Management of Preschool Teacher's Professional Competence Development in the 4.0 Industrial Revolution

“…This study demonstrates that preschool teachers in Malaysia are prepared to implement technology in the classroom to satisfy the needs of Industry 4.0(Jemimah & Suziyani, 2019). According to Taiwanese research, preschool teachers are optimistic about the creative capabilities of the Internet to enhance their pedagogical practices(Chen, 2016).…”