Drivers and Barriers to Adopting ICT: Mexican EFL Primary School Teachers’ Perceptions

Abstract

Information and Communication Technologies (henceforth ICTs) have been widely used by English as a Foreign Language (EFL) teachers as a tool to enhance language learning. This study investigated the drivers and barriers of ICT adoption as perceived by EFL teachers at the primary school level in Mexico. A phenomenological approach was adopted, and semi-structured interviews were used to collect the data. The findings showed that teachers’ positive attitudes towards technology, attention motivation, having access to ICT resources, and enhancing language learning are the main drivers which facilitate the use and adoption of ICT in their classrooms, while, lack of resources, emerging challenges when using ICT resources and teachers’ demotivation are the main barriers. The study concluded that the current findings may help to better understand those factors, and hence inform EFL teachers, policymakers, and education authorities to develop actions to overcome the barriers and promote the pedagogical use of ICT.