Bring your own devices classroom : issues of digital divides in teaching and learning contexts : a thesis presented in partial fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in Information Technology at Massey University, Albany campus, New Zealand

Since the late 1990s, digital divide has gathered much attention from the research community and government organizations. The education sector has been an important area of inquiry for many researchers, as they strive to inform government initiatives on strategies to address digital divide issues prevalent here. This study reports on how existing and new digital divides have evolved with increased penetration of digital learning technologies into teaching and learning practices and the wide usage of enabling technologies by students across formal and informal learning spaces (i.e. both in- and out-of-school), within the context of a BYOD (bring your own device) classroom initiative. A five-year longitudinal investigation of a BYOD classroom initiative by a New Zealand school helped to gain insights into different nature of digital divides in the learning process. First, the BYOD classroom initiative did not end up accentuating existing gaps in access to digital devices and information, despite initial results indicating towards a potentially digitally divided classroom. Second, the study strongly indicated the presence of gaps in terms of information literacy and critical thinking ability, which was eventually bridged in the later stage, as students slowly adjusted to the classroom curricular structures in the BYOD classroom. Third, learner self-efficacy has been identified as the most influential determinant of learning outcomes among students. In earlier phases of investigation of BYOD classrooms initiative, learner self-efficacy was found to be influenced by digital capability, in combination with information literacy, critical thinking ability, and positive motivation. However subsequently, self-efficacy influences affordances in various aspects of social cognitive abilities related to individual’s learning activities affecting how learners engage and apply technology to shape their learning outcomes. The study findings will inform policy makers and education government agencies, in their ongoing quest for bringing about inclusive digital transformation and overall improvement in learning outcomes

The role of adenine nucleotides and their derivatives in the control of liver metabolism

Imperial Users onl

Bridging digital divides in the learning process: challenges and implications of integrating ICTs

Abstract: This paper investigates an initiative by a New Zealand School to integrate one-to-one ICTs into the learning process, called \u27Bring your own device\u27 (BYOD). Prior to embarking on the BYOD initiative, similar past initiatives have been studied and some persistent issues have been identified. Before starting with the detailed investigation of BYOD, a preliminary analysis of the public response data from different sources has also been conducted. From the past initiatives and preliminary analysis of public responses, we have been able to form general research questions for the study. A socio-cultural ecological approach to mobile learning has been considered appropriate as a means of analysis for this study. Authors: Janak Adhikari, Doctoral Student; Dr. David Parsons, Associate Professor and Dr. Anuradha Mathrani, Lecturer, in the department of Information Technology, Massey University Auckland. This paper was presented at mLearn 2012 Mobile and Contextual Learning, Helsinki, Finland, October 16 -18, 2012 and published in the Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Mobile and Contextual Learning .  &nbsp

Technology teachers' perspectives on the Technology curriculum.

Doctoral Degree. University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban.South Africa‟s new democratic government adopted widespread reforms aimed at transforming the country‟s education system and redressing apartheid inequities. The new curriculum framework based on Outcomes Based Education (OBE) introduced nine new learning areas, including Technology. However, many challenges such as contextual constraints, unqualified teachers, inadequate training of teachers, the lack of resources and varied interpretations of the Technology curriculum were encountered during its implementation that led to several curriculum reviews. It is against this backdrop that this study explores Technology teachers‟ perspectives of their experiences in interpreting and implementing the Technology curriculum in the classroom. The conceptual framework that was adopted enabled an understanding of the term perspective, the philosophical background of perspectives and the kind of knowledge that could be obtained from such. The theoretical framework comprised of Nietzsche‟s (1882) theory of „perspectivism‟ on which this study relies heavily to understand Technology teachers‟ perspectives. Perspectives operate on the general notion that that they are altering all the time. Hence, Nietzsche postulates that there should be no stopping points to arrive at an understanding of a perspective. As a result of this, there were various interpretations obtained to synthesise the data obtained. Nietzsche‟s (1882) theory of affects in „perspectivism‟ namely, coherency, legitimacy and practicality, were used in understanding the perspectives of teachers. Thus, the multiplicity of perspectives used in the study crystallised the understanding of this study. The various interpretations of the data obtained as well as the findings align with Nietzsche‟s proliferation of perspectives for interpretation to be correct. A qualitative research design and an interpretive paradigm were adopted to gather rich, detailed data within the participants‟ real contexts. Four participants were purposefully selected from four different school contexts. A case study methodology was employed to gain insight into Technology teachers‟ perspectives. Data collection techniques utilised in the study included individual semi-structured interviews, a video recording of each teacher‟s Technology lesson, followed by a stimulated interview. The semi-structured interviews were believed to provide in-depth information as well as elicit perspectives that would have historical underpinnings of the participants. Video recording of a Technology lesson followed much later by a stimulated interview would ensure that richer data was generated for better understanding of individual teacher‟s perspectives on the curriculum. The data was sorted using thematic analysis. In the data analysis chapters, nine themes were constructed and analysed with the literature and understood using the conceptual and theoretical framework to assist with the ontology. The main finding in this study is that the Technology curriculum is not only widening the gap between the privileged and underprivileged schools, but is implicated in the reproduction of inequalities in South Africa. The findings reveal that South Africa‟s education system as a whole is plagued by several challenges confronting the teaching of the Technology curriculum, which include the disruption of university preparation of Technology teachers due to constant curriculum changes and the constraints of a rigid curriculum which leave little room for flexibility. Learners‟ use of technological devices is disapproved, a universal Technology curriculum for a diversity of school contexts is set and teacher beliefs and Technology curriculum pedagogy are not synchronised. The Technology curriculum is viewed as unfair in terms of its expectations in poorly resourced schools. Assessment was found to be unrealistic, impractical and irrelevant in the Technology curriculum. Furthermore, the Technology curriculum revealed how learners from underprivileged schools lacked cultural capital which hinders them from competing at a global level, creating even further inequalities. Based on these findings, it is recommended that the Department of Education (DoE) keeps Technology teachers up-to-date about curriculum matters and supports teachers during implementation and ensures that the sharing of resource on wheels be implemented so all schools have access to some resources. It is also recommended that Technology teachers should be part of the curriculum design process and that perhaps schools can be used as centres to keep parents of the community up-to-date with technological developments