CONSTRAINTS IN THE USE OF ICT IN TEACHING-LEARNING PROCESSES IN SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN NASARAWA STATE, NIGERIA

Abstract

The study assessed the ability of secondary school teachers to utilize ICT in the teaching and learning process in Nasarawa State. The study adopted a descriptive survey research approach. The proportionate stratified random sampling technique was used to obtain 160 respondents from public secondary schools in Lafia, Akwanga and Keffi areas of the State. The reliability coefficient of the instrument was determined using Cronbach Alpha reliability test, and a value of 0.84 obtained. The data collected were analyzed using inferential statistics. Three research questions guided the study. The results of the findings revealed that, ICT ability of secondary school teachers in Nasarawa State is very low. It is within the average percentage of 27.8% which falls within levels 0 and 1 of the Personal Capability Maturity Model (PCMM). Level 0 means that, majority of the teachers do not know at all and do not care about the importance of ICT while Level 1 means that, some of the teachers have had one or two experiences, where information is an important component for achieving their desires and solving problems, and have involved information technology to look for it. The study also revealed that, there was a significant difference between the ICT ability of male and female teachers. The male teachers were discovered to be more open and enthusiastic towards new media than the female teachers. Also, based on age, the ICT ability of the teachers was inversely proportional to their age. The older the age of the teacher, the lower his ability in ICT, and the younger the age of the teacher, the higher his ability in ICT. The study recommends that the Nasarawa State Government should, among others, regularly organise in-service ICT training for teachers, make ICT literacy a key recruitment requirement, provide adequate ICT facilities in schools, and encourage all teachers, especially females, to embrace emerging educational technologies with a positive and open mindset.