The present study reports a questionnaire-and interview-based survey into computer and Internet technologies and their use in intermediate and secondary schools for boys in Saudi Arabia. Teacher and student questionnaires were developed to collect data from respondents on their assessment of computer and Internet facilities in their schools and the extent of the usage they made of them. Additionally, data were sought on teacher and student computer and Internet skills, how they had acquired these and on whether they had access to a computer and the Internet at home. Both instruments also included a series of statements designed to assess teacher and student attitudes towards computer and their use in school. Questionnaire data were gathered from a sample of 143 teachers and 686 students, drawn from 29 public and private sector intermediate and secondary schools in the Al-Qasseem region of Saudi Arabia. Supplementary data were gathered from interview samples of 10 teachers and 18 students drawn from questionnaire respondents in the same schools. The study found that even in secondary schools, where computer studies are part of the formal curriculum and practical computer work is part of the syllabus, teacher and student respondents reported there being insufficient computers available in computer suites given student numbers. Few if any schools had Internet connections other than those provided by the local directorate-general to facilitate communications between the directorate and school administration staff. Over three-quarters of the teacher and student respondents reported being able to use a computer keyboard and having basic word processing skills. Only a few teachers, for the most part, computer studies specialists, had received any academic training in computers. Most teacher and student respondents with computing skills had either acquired these with the help of a colleague/friend or from a family member; others were self-taught. Over 7 in every 10 teachers and students had access to a computer at home. In intermediate schools, few teachers and students had access to a computer suite. These were those in 'combined' intermediate and secondary schools, and those in a few private sector schools that had partnerships with private companies, who provided them with a computer suite, in return for being allowed to provide computer courses to students (for payment of a fee). Analysis of teacher and student responses to a series of statements on attitudes towards the use of computers in schools showed both teachers and students largely welcomed the computer age and were keen to learn more about computers and to develop their computer skills.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:488264 |
| Date | January 2002 |
| Creators | Al-Showaye, Mohammed |
| Publisher | University of Manchester |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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