Date of Award

Fall 8-29-2018

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Education (Ded)

Department

Organizational Leadership

First Advisor

Dr. Cindy Petersen

Second Advisor

Dr. Keith Larick

Third Advisor

Dr. Donna Sonnenburg

Abstract

Purpose: The purpose of this mixed methods sequential explanatory study was to identify and describe best practices in technology integration in middle school classrooms as perceived by expert middle school teachers. Additionally, it was the purpose of the study to determine the most important best practices and perceived barriers to successful technology integration as perceived by expert middle school teachers.

Methodology: This study included a survey sent to 34 middle school teachers from five counties in northern California who were considered experts in technology integration. Data were gathered from the initial survey instrument and followed up by interviews with participant volunteers.

Findings: Findings from this study suggested middle school best practices for technology integration need to include equitable access, structure and clear limits, and content mastery and 21st century skill development learned through project/problem-based, student-centered inquiry utilizing a variety of technology applications and/or a learning management system.

Conclusions: The conclusions from this study suggested successful middle school technology integrated learning activities/lessons need to incorporate adolescent developmental needs for students to thrive. Expert middle school technology integration teachers stated the most important best practice was utilizing tech-infused, authentic, real-world project/problem issues relevant to today’s world while incorporating core content through learning opportunities engaging to adolescents.

Recommendations: Future research should include a correlational study to examine frequency and type of technology use by teachers and students to identify any relationships that exists, and to identify ways to increase the frequency of student technology use in the classroom. Another recommendation is to conduct a phenomenological study from the middle school student perspective regarding use of technology both inside and beyond the school day. Conduct a multi-case mixed methods explanatory study describing best practices for technology integration across three identified levels (K-5, 6-8, 9-12) providing a more comprehensive perspective across the K-12 system. A case study should be done of three high-performing middle schools to identify and explore key technology integration practices teachers. Lastly, it is recommended to conduct a mixed methods study of middle school principals who deployed 1:1 initiatives to identify and describe the best practices for leading a 1:1 technology initiatives.

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