CONSTRAINTS IN THE USE OF ICT IN TEACHING-LEARNING PROCESSES: THE CASE OF HADIYA ZONE WEST BADEWACHO WOREDA HIGH SCHOOLS

Abstract

We are living in the technological environments and hardly every aspect of human Endeavour can be effectively carried on without ICTs as well as education. ICTs are now at the center of education reform in this 21st century technological development. It is stating that information and communication technology is vital mechanism that can move the current isolated, teachercentered and book-centered learning environment into a student-centered environment. The purpose of this study was to investigate the constraints in the use of information communication technology in education process. It was done in west Badewacho woreda high schools in Hadiya zone, southern region; to assess the ICT facilities and infrastructure, to determine the teachers and students ICT knowledge and skills in use of ICT, to establish how the schools get the ICT technical support and to establish the school administrative practice that influences the use of ICT in teaching and learning in high schools. From the sampled schools an equal number of students and teachers were selected by proportional stratified random sampling. Mixed method approach was employed in the study. Questionnaires, interviews, and a personal observation were used in order to get pertinent data. Qualitative and quantitative data analysis methods were employed to analyze the data. The data collected through questionnaires was entered and analyzed by using (SPSS version.20) computer software. The data collected from both open ended and closed ended questionnaires was analyzed and interpreted by using frequency, percentage, Pearson’s correlation, and ordinal logit regression analysis. 184 questionnaires returned from 201 questionnaires distributed. The research identified that the current status of ICT in west Badewacho woreda high schools is at its infant stage. No ICT policy at work is found in the schools. As the findings showed, unavailability of some ICT tools, inconsistent technology usage and fluctuating of electricity made ICT more unproductive in improving the quality of education. Moreover, the result of the study point out that there are numerous factors that hinder the implementation of ICT at the woreda high schools. These include infrastructure problem, lack of motivations, lack of ICT skill and of training facilities, lack of administrative practices and technical support and resistance of individuals to change. Based on the findings of the study, conclusions were drawn and recommendations were forwarded