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An exploration of teacher stress when using ICT in technology-rich classrooms

This thesis examines stress experienced by teachers whilst using ICT in the classroom. This study approaches this problem from the point of view of a model called the 'Teacher-Technology Environment Interaction Model' of classroom technostress. The study also argues that job complexity is an important concept in understanding environmental stressors. The thesis reports on an empirical investigation conducted in London, which set out to: record and analyse teachers' technostress, investigate the nature of technostress, and whether forms of job complexity impact on stress. Two different studies were carried out. In the first, a survey about the technology and stress in the classroom was used and responses obtained from 136 teachers. This data was analysed using descriptive and correlational statistics. In the second study, nine teachers participated in a classroom investigation, in which approximately 32 hours of teaching activities were observed. Three types of data were collected in the classroom investigation: observation and videoing of the teachers in the classroom; recordings of their Galvanic Skin Resistance (GSR) taken whilst teaching; and interviews after the session. A thematic analysis was carried out using categories partly derived from theory and partly from the data itself. Additionally, four case studies were constructed to provide more detailed descriptions of technostress. The main results of this study were to clearly demonstrate the existence of technostress in the classroom; to describe the relationship between age, attitude towards technology, and amount of use and technostress; to describe the chief causes, symptoms, and coping strategies; to relate the causes to forms of complexity; and to provide evidence for the usefulness of the `Teacher-Technology Environment interaction model of Classroom Technostress'. The thesis concludes by arguing for the value of an approach based on an examination of technostress to complement other approaches for looking at the implementation of technology in the classroom.

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:497837
Date January 2008
CreatorsAl-Fudail, Mohammed Abdulwahab
PublisherUniversity College London (University of London)
Source SetsEthos UK
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation
Sourcehttp://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/10019300/

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