Initial Findings

Research Question: How do teacher perceptions and expertise with technology affect technology integration in the secondary mathematics classroom?

Findings from the 40 teacher surveys I analyzed supported the hypothesis that teachers comfortable using and exploring new technologies will be able to enhance student learning through the successful integration of current technological resources. However, I also discovered that confidence within the content area of mathematics was lower than I expected. This is not what I was expecting. I had assumed that the majority of the respondents would score high in the area of pedagogical content knowledge. Since I only surveyed Georgia teachers, this could be attributed to the new curriculum for mathematics that was introduced in Georgia last year. Many of the respondents commented that they felt their needed to be more training in the content area of mathematics as well as integrating technology. I did find there to be a positive correlation between confidence in content area and integrating technology in the classroom. This information will be helpful for my dissertation research. I will take the new Georgia curriculum into account and alter my initial survey accordingly.