ICT Teachers' Professional Growth Viewed in terms of Perceptions about Teaching and Competencies

Technology integration into the classroom has a major role in creating rich learning and teaching environments. It is obvious that the success of the effective use of technology in classrooms highly depends on Information and Communication Technology (ICT) teachers who are responsible for integrating technology and mentoring other teachers in using it successfully. However, it is unclear how ICT teachers play a role for the achievement of the integration process and what challenges they experience during this process. The purpose of this study is, therefore, to portray the professional growth of ICT teachers in terms of their perceptions of teaching and their competencies in the Turkish elementary education system. Data was obtained from 104 (55 female, 49 male) ICT teachers. The quantitative data analysis was supplemented with a qualitative analysis to get a better understanding of the professional growth among in-service ICT teachers. Results showed that despite their positive self-perceptions of competence, ICT teachers faced difficulties such as classroom management, number of students, and hardware-software issues regarding the effective use of technology, especially cutting edge technology, in the classroom. According to teachers, the ability to integrate technology in the classroom was negatively affected by time limitations, poor design of Information Technology (IT) class, lack of flexibility in their roles as teachers, overcrowded classes, and classroom management issues. Finally, this study looked at ICT teachers' opinions regarding factors that encourage/discourage them from working in schools. The results of this study also shed light on the awareness of the significance of integrating technology into their teaching and learning activities.