Use of ICT by English teachers of grade 6 and 7 in primary schools of Fuvahmulah / Liuna Hassan Didi

Abstract:
A lot of changes have been brought to the education systems all over the world with the introduction of ICT in teaching and learning. The primary schools of Fuvahmulah have also introduced various technological tools with the intension of making the teaching and learning more effective. Thus, the purpose of this research is to explore the use of ICT tools by grade 6 and 7 English teachers in the primary schools of Fuvahmulah and what challenges they are encountering in integrating ICT tools in their teaching. A qualitative case study method was used to investigate the research questions. All 5 grade 6 and 7 English teachers who are teaching in the primary schools of Fuvahmulah were selected for the study. Data was collected through semi structures interviews, lesson observations and document analysis.
Findings of the research indicate that teachers who participated in this study use ICT in innovative ways to teach English. They use the technology to motivate the students using various tools to make the lessons more interactive and interesting for the students. They also use the technology to expose the students to the language through video, audio and various online sites in order to improve students' vocabulary and content on the topic in discussion. Moreover they try to use ICT to promote collaboration with little success. However, it was also learnt that the teachers encounter various challenges in incorporation ICT in their lessons. Some of the challenges include, lack of training, lack of accessibility to ICT tools and lack of technical support and some behavioral problems from the students.

Keywords: ICT, second language, language acquisition.
Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Education, Villa College, Faculty of Education, 2014 Masters project (M.Edu.). Includes bibliographical references