Date of Conferral

2022

Degree

Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)

School

Education

Advisor

Darci J. Harland

Abstract

More research on information and communications technology (ICT) use for teaching and learning is needed, particularly since the almost global transition from traditional face-to-face to virtual classrooms forced by the COVID-19 pandemic. The problem addressed in this current qualitative project study was the reported challenges experienced by teachers integrating ICT into the delivery of the biology curriculum in Bahamian public high school classrooms. The purpose of the study was to explore the biology teachers’ ICT integration into their virtual classrooms during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study was grounded in the technological pedagogical and content knowledge conceptual framework. Three research questions focused on the teachers’ decisions to use ICT in their biology classrooms, their challenges with ICT integration and their mitigation of challenges, and their needs for improving ICT use. A purposeful sampling procedure yielded eight participants, and data were collected using semistructured virtual interviews on Zoom. Coding analysis of interview data revealed several emergent themes and four key findings: (a) ICT selection hinged on logistics and teachers’ technological and pedagogical knowledge; (b) teachers experienced infrastructural, technical, and pedagogical challenges but found solutions; (c) the ICT integration was valuable; and, (d) teachers wanted to improve their ICT use to enhance their teaching and students’ learning in remote classrooms. A position paper was developed to be a positive social change catalyst by informing local education policymakers and stakeholders about biology teachers’ suggestions for needed modifications to better support teachers in remote instructional delivery.

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