Date of Award

Spring 2005

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (EdD)

Department

Curriculum, Instruction, and Leadership

First Advisor

David Gullatt

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of technology professional development for secondary teachers toward the usage of that technology in the classroom to assist with the teaching/learning process. This research also examined the effects of knowledge about technology for secondary teachers on the utilization of technology in the classroom. Data were gathered from the Technology Proficiency Self Assessment Instrument issued by the Louisiana State Department of Education. The target population consisted of secondary school teachers in Louisiana from 202 secondary schools in twenty-eight parishes. From the 202 secondary schools in Louisiana, a sample of teachers (n = 530) from 71 secondary schools were used in the study, 38 public and 33 private. Data were analyzed using correlations, a multiple linear regression, t-tests, and ANOVAs with the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences 12.0 (SPSS). The total teacher surveys received and analyzed were 254, 47.9% (n = 530). Significant relationships (p < .01) were found between professional development in technology and technology utilization in the classroom. Knowledge about technology and technology utilization in the classroom also had significant relationships (p < .01). A multiple linear regression analysis was performed on the dependent variable, technology utilization, based on the two independent variables, professional development and knowledge about technology, with F(2,244) = 28.991, p < .001, and an adjusted R2 of .185. Findings indicated that professional development and knowledge of technology are important factors in predicting the use of technology in the classroom. Male and female teachers who taught any subject utilize technology in a similar manner in the classroom. However, teachers utilized technology more in the classroom when they had a graduate degree than teachers with a bachelor's degree. Also, teachers who taught all grade levels utilize technology more in the classroom than teachers who taught the individual grade levels or a combination of grade levels.

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