Are teachers equipped to use classroom technology?

Published: December 4th, 2018

New data shows teachers are more confident using edtech than their students

Now in its third year, The State of Technology in Education Report 18/19, pioneered by Promethean, is beginning to plot real trends in the education sector. The report has surveyed over 1,800 educators and school leaders across the UK to provide an insight into challenges and opportunities in UK schools.

Figures from The State of Technology in Education Report 18/19 showed 54 per cent of respondents believed they know more or a lot more about edtech than their students.

Following these findings, Teacher Tapp posed the same question to its audience asking teachers “When it comes to using technology in your classroom, do you know more or less than your students?”

Teacher Tapp is an app that has been developed to send daily questions to thousands of teachers around the UK at 3:30pm each day. The data provides valuable teacher perspectives on an array of topics.

Over 1,900 teachers responded to the survey question, echoing the results of the State of Technology in Education report 18/19. 67 per cent of respondents believe they know more or a lot more than their students about edtech.

Professor Becky Allen from Teacher Tapp, commented: “Insights like the State of Technology in Education Report and Teacher Tapp polls are incredibly important to quantify the opinions of educators in a sector that is known to have many challenges. We would naturally expect the results of Teacher Tapp to be slightly elevated because of the nature of the audience, but it’s refreshing to see that despite facing many challenges, educators are continuing to adopt a positive attitude to their development and approach.”

When considering budgetary pressures in education, the impact on edtech provision and the knock-on effect on the level of staff training on new technologies, the figures can be quite surprising.

The newly issued State of Technology in Education Report 18/19 has reinforced concerns over budgetary pressures and a lack of adequate training received by educators on school technologies. Only 5 per cent of respondents believed they receive full training and support on new technologies and a staggering 54 per cent of respondents confirmed budgetary constraints will make it difficult to realise strategic objectives in the year ahead.

Rachel Ashmore, Promethean Teaching & Learning Consultant, said: “Despite the challenges of budgets and training, on a daily basis we see how teachers are invested in technology and enthusiastic about using it to enhance teaching and learning. At Promethean we understand the challenges facing educators today and pride ourselves on the support and resources we provide to teachers to help them get the most out of edtech.

“It’s brilliant to see the results of the State of Technology in Education Report aligned with the results of the Teacher Tapp survey, reinforcing the teacher confidence trend we are seeing.”

Other findings from the State of Technology in Education Report 18/19 included:

  • 54 per cent of respondents now use technology to innovate in their teaching
  • Teachers are increasingly digitally minded with 83 per cent of respondents stating they feel like they know the same or more about edtech than their students
  • 79 per cent of respondents believe edtech will most likely be blended with traditional teaching resources over the next decade rather than replacing it

A full copy of the Promethean State of Technology in Education Report 18/19 can be downloaded here.