ICT Coordinators’ Perceptions on ICT Practices, Barriers and its Future in Malaysian Secondary Schools: Correlation Analysis

AbstractICT is seen as an important component of the teaching and learning process in classrooms. In Malaysian schools, ICT coordinators have a huge responsibility in managing ICT matters, including the facilities, hardware and software, monitoring ICT activities, as well as planning and conducting the trainings for teachers and students alike. As the resource personnel who coordinate ICT matters, it will be interesting to investigate their perceptions on the practices and issues pertaining to ICT at their school setting. In specific, this study intends to investigate the practices, barriers and future of ICT as perceived by ICT coordinators in Malaysian secondary schools. A survey research method by using a questionnaire was employed to collect data on ICT coordinators. Using a stratified sampling technique, a total of 400 secondary schools were randomly selected to participate in this study, and the questionnaire was then distributed to the ICT coordinators from each of these schools. A total of 236 questionnaires were returned (59% response rate). The results indicated a significant and moderate positive correlation between ICT in professional practice and future of ICT in schools (r: 0.521, p: 0.00). On the other hand, a significant, negative but weak correlation was observed between barriers in ICT practice in school and the future of ICT (r:-0.393, p: 0.00). Additionally, a significant, negative and moderate correlation was observed between barriers in ICT practice in school and ICT professional practice (r: 0.409; p: 0.00). These findings suggest that the future of ICT in Malaysian schools is very much associated with the current practice of ICT both by the teachers and the students as well as the barriers faced in using ICT in classrooms