Teachers’ perspectives on the integration of information and communication technology into the teaching and learning of Sesotho
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Date
2020-12
Authors
Filita, Naledi Judith
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
Publisher
University of the Free State
Abstract
The use of information and communication technology (ICT) devices has increased drastically in the past few years even in developing countries such as South Africa. As the relevance of ICTs increases across various areas of life, an understanding of its use by teachers for subject teaching becomes urgent. It is for these reasons that the study explored teachers’ views and understanding on the use of ICTs to teach a language in schools. The study sought to unpack teachers’ views and understanding of teaching one South African language, Sesotho, as a home language in secondary schools (Grade 8-12) within a district. Twelve teachers from a cohort of two Sesotho clusters of secondary schools in a selected district were recruited to take part in the study as participants by providing their first semester (January to May 2019) lesson plans. From these twelve, four were further selected to participate in semi-structured interviews. The views elicited in the course of the interviews were categorised into themes. The constructivism and theoretical pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK) frameworks provided the theoretical foundation and guided the study. Five main findings were attained. Firstly, regarding the contextual settings, the findings of the study revealed that the availability of ICT tools determined the level at which participants integrated ICTs in teaching. In addition, lack of ICT tools available in schools limits teachers from exploring and practising different methods of teaching. Secondly, teachers possess poor technological knowledge (TK) and due to this, they experience technological problems with integrating ICTs into the teaching of Sesotho. Thirdly, teachers use the ICT resources available at school to ensure that teaching does not solely depend on traditional methods. Fourthly, the use of mobile devices benefits both teachers and learners as they are able to share information and ensure that the teaching and learning process does not end in the classroom but continues to take place even outside of the school premises. Finally, lack of information on operating technological devices hinders the process of integrating ICTs into the teaching of their subject, Sesotho. The perspectives of Sesotho teachers in using ICTs in their practices may be addressed and recognised. The study may also inspire pedagogical practices that encourage learners to understand the value of Sesotho. Furthermore, the study may influence policy makers in considering addressing the issue of guidelines on ICT integration for the teaching of Sesotho. Lastly, through this study, the issue of the digital divide and its effects on schools may be addressed by the Department of Basic Education.
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Keywords
Dissertation (M.Ed. (School for Mathematics, Natural Sciences and Technology Education), 2020, Information and Communication Technology (ICT), Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK), Sotho language - Study and teaching, Teachers - Attitudes, Comprehension