ICT in the Professional Development of Mathematics Teachers: A Narrative Inquiry

Abstract

The integration of information and communication technology (ICT) has become essential in teaching learning process especially in mathematics teaching. The research entitled "ICT in the Professional Development of Mathematics Teachers: A Narrative Inquiry"proposed to dig out the praxis of ICT on the professional development of mathematics teachers and to explore the role of ICT in the professional development of mathematics teachers. I followed the narrative inquiry research design under the qualitative research method.I prepared the in-depth interview schedule to collect authentic data for my research. The interview was conducted with four mathematics teachers selected by purposive sampling strategy to make data more valid. In this research participant’s narrations helped to find out the perception of teachers towards the role of ICT on teacher professional development (TPD). This research was done in Sindhupalchok district.I interpreted and analyzed the collected data with the different themes. Findings showed that different ICT tools helped to develop the professional skills of the mathematics teachers. In the teaching and learning process,teachers can use different tools like,the internet and computer, videos,mathematical applications (e.g.Geo Gebra)etc. which also make them updated on the basis of changeable time. Different ICT tools cancreate problems for the teachers,it takes time to prepare and use and takes more economy. Teachers also have an important role to reduce the negative effect of ICT. Although the software is very beneficial for teaching in everyday sessions, it is highly expensive to purchase, and it takes more time to learn how to use it. It was discovered that mathematics teachers in the Sindhupalchok area improved their professional growth after using various tools and software available on the Internet. Different stakeholders have to play the role to increase the effectiveness of ICT on the professional development of mathematics teachers.