Determinants Of Information And Communication Technology Adoption In Teaching And Learning Among Early Childhood Development And Education Schools In Kisumu County

One of the many challenges facing many developing countries today is preparing their societies and governments for globalization and the information and communication revolution. Academics are increasingly concerned with the need to make their societies competitive in the emergent information economy. For example in 1997 Uganda working with World Bank Institute initiated a programme to effectively introduce computers in secondary schools .The project was done in phases to train teachers.Governments in developed countries have responded to the challenge by initiating national programmes to introduce computers in education (Albirini, 2004). Computers were introduced in Kenya in 1970’s and the internet became available in 1993 (Ford, 2007). In a study by Wabuyete (2003) results indicated that while ICT has penetrated many sectors including banking, transportation, communications and medical services, the Kenyan educational sector seem to lag behind. The definition of ICT tools consists of a broad range of digital devices such as computers, tablets, multi – touch screen, interactive white boards, mobile devices, cameras, Abstract: Teachers are form human resource that facilitates the acquisition of requisite skills, knowledge and attitude necessary for the fulfillment education goals. For better education delivery, competence of teachers in ICT is imperative. Adopting ICT in teaching and learning by teachers is believed to highly improve their productivity in instructional duties as well as embracing technology in education. However, studies show that little information exists on determinants of ICT adoption in ECDE centers for its effective mainstreaming in instructional process. The purpose of this study was to investigate the determinants of ICT adoption for teaching and learning among rural and urban in ECDE schools in Kenya with particular focus on Kisumu County. The study objectives included: examination of aspects of teacher training for ICT adoption in teaching and learning in ECDE schools; establishment of accessibility to ICT resources for teaching and learning in the centers; determination of the attitude of teachers towards adoption of ICT in instruction; establishing teaching strategies that embrace ICT adoption in ECDE schools and; assessment of management systems for ICT adoption in the schools. Study population was 2220 teachers in ECDE schools from which a sample size of 200 respondents was drawn. Questionnaire and interview schedule were employed to collect data. Instrument pilot testing was done among 20 teachers to determine validity and reliability. Data was analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Qualitative data was sorted, transcribed and categorized into themes and sub-themes and then reported. Quantitative data was coded and processed using SPSS computer package to generate frequencies and percentages and summarized in tables. The findings of the study is hoped to establish the determinants of ICT adoption for its better implementation in teaching and learning in ECDE schools in the county.