Educators in MENA struggle to implement technology in classroom: Study
Date
6/28/2016 6:14:06 AM
UAE: 97% of educators in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) feel that technology plays a big role in transforming education systems. This is according to a recent survey conducted by Microsoft, which polled educators from primary, through to secondary and tertiary institutions, as well as academic governing bodies across the region.
However, only 32% of respondents are implementing STEM education and digital literacy as part of their curriculum.
Challenges, barriers to implementing technology in school curriculums
“With over half the survey respondents indicating a lack of budget and training to optimise the use of technology in the classroom, there is a definite need to improve integration of technology in classrooms in the region to meet the needs of the 21st century labour market,” says Ahmed Ameen Ashour, Educational Lead, Microsoft Gulf.
Other challenges identified by the respondents include:
--- A lack of training to use technology optimally, with 52% saying they didn’t have adequate access to training.
--- A further 40% indicated that there is a lack of integration of technology with the curriculum.
“As we bring technology into the classroom, we need to be careful that we use it to complement, rather than replace, traditional teaching practices, and ensure that it is approached holistically. For example, when we implemented the Office Student Advantage program, it was done hand-in-hand with teacher training, to incorporate it into their usual methods to enhance their lessons rather than replace them,” adds Ahmed Ameen.