Towards a curricular integration of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) in Primary and Secondary schools in Andalusia (Spain)

Abstract

This work presents some of the results of a research designed to evaluate the impact of the policy of educational innovation undertaken by the regional autonomous government of Andalusia through the mass installation of information and communication technology (ICT) in Primary and Secondary schools (ICT Centres). The research is based on a significant sample, namely the first students to have graduated at the ICT centres. This group has been studied for the impact of telematic courses and the use of free software both at institutional level, in terms of organisation at the centres, and at classroom level; hence, this study looks at the direct repercussions on the teachinglearning processes. A wide range of instruments was deployed (questionnaires for students, teachers and management teams, classroom observation, group discussion, documentary analysis and materials…) during the three years of research in all eight provinces of Andalusia. In sum, the study supports the notion that it is necessary to overcome the merely technical-instrumental attitude in teachers, and inclines towards ICT-integrated didactic action that is centred on the teacher. This article describes and analyses the critical aspects of ICT integration.