LA MESOCOMUNICACIÓN Y EL CONCEPTO DE TELEVISIÓN DE PROXIMIDAD

Education is not a simple matter of children learning, but depends on teachers being able to create learning opportunities for them. However, teachers tend to introduce technology into their classrooms in order to provide the same content as before, but in digital form, rather than using technology as a means to centre their teaching on the learners (Karsenti and Fievez, 2013). When mobile devices were first introduced into education, studies of their introduction tended to focus narrowly on the impact of this hardware and the associated apps on learners’ attainment (Hargis et al., 2014; Jahnke and Kumar, 2014; Falloon, 2013). There was then a shift in research focus towards investigating how teachers used the devices to enhance pupils’ learning (Erbes et al., 2017; Mouza and Barrett- Greenly, 2015; Ruggiero and Mong, 2015). This section identifies some factors which should be considered in order to understand how teachers can make the most of such mobile devices.

Smith and Santori (2015) warn that it is often assumed that teachers will be able to use tablets in lessons without guidance on how to use them. Tablets have the potential to support teachers to shift from a teacher-centred to a learner-centred approach to learning (Beauchamp et al., 2015) as well as supporting innovative teaching, but if teachers are not ready for such a shift they will resist the transformation of their teaching (Montrieux et al., 2014). It is important to prepare teachers to use tablets and to be able to bring innovative transformation to their teaching. Teachers’ reactions to introduced technology can take any one of three forms (Abbott, 2016): They may simply choose to ignore the new technology, or

to please their administrators and supervisors by using it, thus relieving the pressure on them to do so. The third option is for them not only to take up the new technology willingly but to take the initiative to explore what it offers and how they can benefit from it. Other authors (Niederhauser and Stoddart, 2001; Becker and Ravitz, 1999) classify teachers into two categories according to the ways in which they decide to use the technological devices in teaching and learning activities. These two alternatives have been described as innovative teaching on one hand and simple “instructional teaching” methods on the other (Montrieux et al., 2014).

When introducing technology it is important to start by convincing teachers of the value of using that technology. Education is not improved by the introduction of new technology if it is used to perform the same old practices; a reform project should also introduce changes in curricula and in teaching approaches to take full advantage of the new technology (Vrasidas and Glass, 2005). Individual teachers’ reactions to the project will play a role in shaping the innovation. Hermans et al. (2008) suggest that the first step in innovating in the complex classroom context is to understand teachers’ beliefs. Palmer (2017) recommends that teachers should explore their inner selves when an innovation is introduced into a school. Acknowledging the importance of teachers’ ideas about the introduced technology, successful implementation can be achieved through the provision of training courses that help teachers not only to welcome the new technology but also to make the most of it. Fullan (2001) argues that adopting new approaches to teaching can change teachers’ beliefs and attitudes. Their beliefs about their teaching, combined with their attitudes to the use of technology, will determine various dimensions of their reactions when new technologies are introduced.

The first dimension is where teachers decide on whether to modify their teaching material or to adapt the newly introduced devices so that materials and devices fit with each other. Second, as new technology is introduced, some teachers will adopt completely new teaching approaches, which might be associated with a third dimension. Of course, teachers are not static and there are no clear boundaries between the abovementioned responses. In addition, the diversity of

teachers’ experiences and practices makes it inevitable that teachers will adopt new technological practices as well as acquiring new pedagogical skills (Hermans et al., 2008). A teacher may start using a new technology as a way to please the school leadership, but this same teacher might be later be self-directed towards using technology. These categories are not easily identified and classifying teachers into them is not straightforward, as some may start with one set of intensions, then find new questions arising on how to use the new technology. Even when teachers have decided to use it their classrooms, new dimensions will arise.

Teachers may lose confidence in their successful use of tablets when they do not receive adequate training on facing the challenges to proper technology use, leading them to doubt the use of technology in lessons (Erbes et al., 2017). Even those teachers with positive attitudes towards classroom use may have concerns about facing situations that would shake their confidence if they are not sure about forthcoming challenges and changes in classroom practice (Young, 2016). On the other hand, a study of teachers’ acceptance of tablets in the classroom found that not all teachers were clear on how tablets were to be used innovatively to support teaching and learning and that those who claimed to know had built their ideas on assumptions (Ifenthaler and Schweinbenz, 2013). For teachers to have positive attitudes and gain confidence about using tablets meaningfully they need to have minimum knowledge of their use. Mouza and Barrett-Greenly (2015) report that when teachers were given iPad tablets to use in their classes, they did not know how to establish user accounts, nor were they able to check connectivity or download apps for teaching purposes. This obliged them to rely on continuous support from others including their learners. Similarly, Erbes et al. (2017) found that educators depended heavily on the experience of undergraduate students to set up and use tablets in the classroom. Furthermore, the only training that teachers received as support from their pupils was the advice to switch from PowerPoint to an app suggested by their pupils (Erbes et al., 2017).

Inadequate training has been the challenge most frequently cited in studies of tablet introduction (Hu et al., 2003; Erbes et al., 2017; Beauchamp et al., 2015). However, the most difficult was to identify teachers’ training needs and the

software to train them on. Another problem was that teachers having little experience with tablets regarded the use of certain functions of apps to be particularly important, while neglecting others. In response, some schools have introduced self-learning initiatives, where teachers were invited to take tablets home to explore their features (Beauchamp et al., 2015). However, this is not always possible, as a shortage of devices is another challenge that many schools face. Concerns about the use of time were also strongly linked to the effectiveness of training sessions. Three interesting findings emerged from a study of a professional development programme intended to make college educators comfortable in teaching the new generation of mobile learners: the need for training on specific software, for “strong specialist input” and for “time to digest” the input provided (Psiropoulos et al., 2016).

Finally, training is an essential determinant of the success or failure of technology projects; therefore it is important for all stakeholders to be involved in the planning of training and if possible to undergo training (Keengwe et al., 2009). However, Ruggiero and Mong (2015) found that in addition to formal training, teachers’ professional development may be advanced though observing colleagues, reading about technology and searching the internet, for example. Teachers also learned from their learners, as learning opportunities were created for both parties, which challenged the traditional teacher-pupil relationship and encouraged authoritarian teachers to accept knowledge co-construction (Erbes et al., 2017).

This chapter has reviewed the literature on activity theory and on the use of tablets in schools. The next explains the methodology adopted for the present study.

3

Chapter 3: Research Methodology

3.1 Introduction

The previous chapter reviewed the literature on the use of tablets in schools and other educational contexts. In this chapter, I explain the choice of methodology used in this study. I begin by considering the research paradigm, then address some ethical considerations and discuss the use of activity theory as the theoretical framework, before turning to the research design, the pilot study, the use of observational analysis and the data collection instruments.

The aim of this study is to explore what happened when tablets were introduced into an Omani school’s classrooms. The research questions are:

1- What are the contextual factors mediating the use of tablets in the classroom?

2- What are the impacts in terms of the roles and responsibilities of the agents involved in using tablets in the classroom?

3- In what way does the use of tablets affect teaching practice in the classroom?