Attitudes of pre-service elementary teachers towards graphing calculator technologies in learning and teaching science

Proficiency of integrating educational technology into teaching is now seen as an important qualification for elementary school teachers. We integrated Texas Instruments graphing calculators and Vernier data collection technology in our undergraduate science methods classes for pre-service elementary school teachers. The study purposes were set up to find out whether pre-service teachers' knowledge and comfort with the use of graphing calculator technology was influenced by the integration of this technology into the methods course and whether pre-service teachers' perspectives of using graphing calculator technology for their own learning and as a teaching tool evolved during the methods course? Data collected from surveys and reflection journals show that pre-service teachers' perspectives strongly depended on the intensity and length of experience they had with the use of the technology. More experience and practice provides pre-service teachers with a better understanding of the benefits of technology for their future students as well as for their own learning. However, their confidence was somewhat independent to their perspectives. They could perceive this technology very useful, but they were not confident to use it.