A PHENOMENOLOGICAL STUDY OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS REGARDING 21ST CENTURY TECHNOLOGY INTEGRATION TRAINING

The purpose of this transcendental phenomenological study was to understand how in-service teachers with 3-5 years of experience perceived their pre-service training regarding integration of 21st Century technology into instruction. Twenty participants from a rural public school system in southeast North Carolina participated. This study attempted to describe: How do 3rd – 5th year teachers in one public school district in North Carolina describe college experiences with educational training to integrate 21st Century technology into their classroom lesson plans? Through interviews and a focus group themes were identified through the participant’s perceptions of the phenomena of 21st Century technology integration training. Participants identified these themes: (a) exposure to basic uses of technology, (b) 21st Century technology assignments were neither purposeful nor rigorous, and (c) the majority of integration of confidence and/or competence began after field placements. Themes were used in developing a list of best practices as articulated by the participants