DIFFUSION OF ICT RELATED PROBLEMS AMONG STUDENTS: THE TEACHERS’ EXPERIENCE

Abstract

INTRODUCTION. The dissemination of ICT among youth is leading to the rise of new sets ofproblems in the classrooms in all levels of schools. More and more teachers are faced with newchallenges related to the misuses of the powerful technologies that their students bring intothe classroom. The present research studies the experiences that school teachers have with ICTrelatedproblems among their pupils. METHOD. An anonymous questionnaire was created andsubmitted online to an Italian national sample of 1,034 primary, middle and secondary schoolteachers. The participation was anonymous and voluntary. RESULTS. Half of the respondentsaffirmed having witnessed some problems related to ICTs among students, ranging from cyberbullyingto excessive use to sexting or dangerous behaviours, such as real life meetings withunknown adults met previously online. In most cases the school was directly involved in thesolution to the problems, while only a few situations required the intervention of the police. Theinterviewees strongly supported the idea that schools could and should play a critical role in theICT education of students. DISCUSSION. This data strongly suggests that teachers of all levelsof school, both from metropolitan and rural areas, are already handling a wide range of issuesrelated to the dissemination of ICTs. The problems start early in primary school, but seem toboom in middle school. This leads to important conclusions, most of all that educational andprevention programs should start in the first years of school. The teaching staff, provided withthe required and requested support and training, show a positive attitude towards the idea oftaking on a more active role in the education of their students in safe and correct ICT use.