Barriers to the effective use of technology in education

Technology used effectively in education can transform and enrich the learning process. However, with the positives, there come some negatives also.

In an interesting article that I read, Karehka Ramsey discusses barriers to the effective use of technology. Three of these were:

• Lack of professional development
• Resistance to change
• Access

Lack of professional development is a barrier as teachers may feel unprepared to learn and integrate technology into their teaching. There is a risk that students may be hungry for technological development, but cannot receive it from someone who is not trained. Resistance to change is a personal aspect for each teacher. Some teachers may not want to change their tactics of teaching and that the preparation of using technology in their lessons can be demanding on their time. This would prove to be a strong barrier and staff development/training on using ICT could be made available for teachers. Access is another barrier, not all rooms may have an interactive white board fitted into them, or some might be missing projectors. I must admit, in Pembrokeshire College most rooms are fitted with an interactive board and projector which has been really helpful. I want to add another barrier to the effective use of technology in lessons: 

• cost

Some schools or colleges may not be able to afford equipment. It can be expensive to install technological functions and there is also the cost of having laptops/computers for students.

References:
Ramsey, Karehka, (2013) http://www.useoftechnology.com/barriers-effective-technology-education/ [ Accessed 21 January 2015]