Thesis (Ph.D.)--Murdoch University, 2005. / Thesis submitted to the Division of Arts. Bibliography: leaves 448-492.

Thesis (D Phil (Information Science))--University of Pretoria, 2008. / Abstract in English. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Tennessee, Knoxville, 2003. / Title from title page screen (viewed Sept. 24, 2003). Thesis advisor: Dr. Edward L. Counts, Jr. Document formatted into pages (xii, 206 p. : ill.(some col.)). Vita. Includes bibliographical references (p. 71-76).

Theses (M.A.)--Carleton University, 2002. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 109-114). Also available in electronic format on the Internet.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of the Philippines at Los Baños, 1987. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references (leaves [172]-178).

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Stellenbosch, 2005. / Includes bibliographical references. Also available via the Internet.

Zugl.: Trier, Univ., Diss., 2006

Doctor of Philosophy / Curriculum and Instruction Programs / David S. Allen / Haijun Kang / Using technology effectively has been proven to enhance education. The status quo in Saudi Arabia reflects low-level usage of technology in K-12 classrooms. Preparing 21st Century teachers to integrate technology in their future classrooms for meaningful learning requires College of Education faculty to model using technology effectively. This study investigated the technology integration practices of faculty members in the College of Education at Taibah University, particularly to what extent these practices are aligned with ISTE NETS-T standards and what factors predict these practices. Based on the literature, the factors examined include attitudes towards technology use, pedagogical beliefs, technical skills, workload, professional development, technology access, technical support, and leadership support. The population of the study was the 257 faculty in the College of Education at Taibah University. The study used a web-based survey containing 66 closed-ended items to collect data, and 170 valid responses were obtained (66% response rate). Descriptive and multiple linear regression analyses were conducted to analyze data. Findings from the first research question revealed that faculty members’ technology integration practices were well-matched with ISTE NETS-T standards since the overall mean of these items was (M= 4.25, SD= .64). This indicates that faculty members had awareness of using technology effectively based on these standards to engage students in meaningful learning. Results from the multiple linear regression analysis revealed that the overall model was significant as it explains 43% of the variability in faculty members’ technology integration practices. Three significant factors statistically predicted faculty members’ technology integration practices based on ISTE NETS standards. Faculty members’ attitude toward technology had a positive relationship with faculty members’ technology integration practices [β=.35, p=.00]. Faculty technical skills had also a statistically significant positive relationship with faculty members’ technology integration practices [β=.19, p=.00]. However, leadership support was found to have a statistically significant negative relationship with faculty members’ technology integration practices in teaching based on ISTE NETS-T standards [β=-.23, p=.00]. These results, in addition to the means of the independent variables, showed that the highly rated technology integration factors, including technology attitudes and technical skills, predict their high technology integration practices based on ISTE NET-T standards. However, faculty members still need more support in several technology integration factors including professional development, technology access, workload, and leadership support. The study recommends education faculty members to model the effective use of technology for pre-service teachers through providing them with opportunities to observe it in a variety of instructional models and practice the constructivist use of technology in lesson plan assignments and projects during the program, which helps in developing positive attitudes toward technology use among pre-service teachers. College of Education leaders are recommended to have a clear shared technology vision and offer the resources and support needed to make instructional technology integration successful. Recommendations for future studies are also discussed.

Doctor of Philosophy / Department of Curriculum and Instruction / Rosemary Talab / The purpose of this study was to investigate teacher practices of enabling factors in the implementation of technology-assisted PBL, in Tatweer schools in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. This study also explored how the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE) National Education Technology Standards for Teachers (NETS.T) were used in Tatweer classrooms and for what purposes technology was used to support PBL in the Tatweer schools. Using a constructivist framework, a convergent parallel mixed-methods design was used. The survey included closed and open-ended items, which was sent to 1073 male and female Tatweer teachers in 30 schools. Of the 710 responses received, 640 were valid, resulting in a 60% return rate. Factorial MANOVA results indicated that gender and school level were statistically significant at p < .05, while other teacher characteristics (degree types, educational degree, years of teaching experience, and content area), including their interaction, were not. ANOVA results indicated that gender effects on PBL practices were statistically significant on both teacher roles (F (1,403) = 17.77, partial ƞ2 = .042, p < .05) and learning environment (F (1, 403) = 10.83, partial ƞ2 = 026, p < .001). A means comparison indicated that males had better technology-assisted PBL practices on both variables. ANOVA and post hoc test results found that high schools used technology-assisted PBL better than elementary schools, and intermediate schools performed better than elementary schools. No significant difference was found between technology-assisted PBL practices in high schools and intermediate schools within the school system. Descriptive analysis results for research question two indicated that Tatweer school teacher technology uses were aligned with ISTE NETS.T, though there was very little use of technology in PBL. Though 177 units of information were found for the seven open-ended questions, little was related to the research questions, so Grounded Theory was used to find 19 overall themes. Findings indicated several casual conditions for the lack of technology-assisted PBL, including technology access, classroom design, space, and facilities, ministry/district support, and teacher preparation. Action strategies included providing needed technology, offering technology training, providing training in new instructional methods, creating a more flexible curriculum, and adopting advanced teaching methods and authentic assessment. Recommendations for Tatweer schools included a better learning environment, greater professional technology access, and school system support. Recommendations for future studies included conducting a similar study on other schools and a further examination of Grounded Theory findings.

It is essential to consider what new technologies mean to the people who use them and the ways in which they are experienced and used. In the context of public transit services in Saskatoon, understanding what the recent changes from a manual to an electronic/automated system means to users and the broader community is critically important to the overall assessment of the service. Investigating users’ lived experiences and interpretations of technical artifacts is valuable to understanding socio-technical relations or the embodied interactions of humans and machines as “technologies-in-practice.” Research into socio-technical relations has primarily focused on large scale technological systems and expert practices while less attention has been paid to “seemingly mundane” technologies or technical artifacts routinely used in everyday life. At the same time, this preoccupation has overshadowed or downplayed the importance of exploring users’ experiences and interpretations of technologies. The goal of this research is to contribute to the sociological understanding of mundane technologies-in-practice and socio-technical relations more broadly. In order to gain insight into this relationship, this thesis focuses on bus riders’ (users) and the community’s perceptions of the Go-Pass smartcard and electronic fare system used by the public transit service in Saskatoon. The perspectives of Go-Pass users and community stakeholders (n=15) were investigated using qualitative semi-structured interviews to gain deeper understanding into the complex relationship between users and technologies. Drawing from Science and Technology Studies (STS) and the sociology of technology literature, I propose that a sociomaterial theoretical perspective following a mutual shaping framework offers insight into socio-technical relations. Both critical and feminist technology studies literature has been helpful for developing an understanding of the wider social and political contexts of technical use which underscores this study. In particular, the conceptual insights of “socio-technical assemblages” (Suchman, 2007) and “intra-action” (Barad, 2003) have been helpful tools for exploring agency, subjectivity and power which is key to uncovering the intricacies of socio-technical relations and human-machine interaction. The four main themes emerging from this study were: 1) shifting human-machine roles and relationships; 2) the socio-technical construction of the bus rider; 3) configuring users’ and technologies; and 4) structural issues and social justice implications of technologies-in-practice. The findings demonstrate that the use of this new system is mutually co-constructed by both social and technical factors whereby both the users and the technology inform perceptions and use. There was also the unexpected connection between users’ everyday situated uses, experiences and interpretations of the Go-Pass technologies to wider social-political contexts. There were a number of issues raised in relation to the implementation of the Go-Pass system which had negative effects or unintended social and technical consequences particularly for those most marginalized economically. At the same time, there were important benefits and positive effects on riders’ quality of life and use of the service. Finally, participants’ perspectives have contributed to understanding what the Go-Pass technologies mean to them, the ways in which they are used in practice and the ways in which the mixing of people and seemingly mundane technologies shape relations in everyday settings.