Engineering Trainee-Teachers’ Attitudes Toward Technology Use in Pedagogical Practices: Extending Computer Attitude Scale (CAS)

Abstract

The current study examined the trainee teachers’ attitudes toward technology adoption and use in tertiary engineering education. The Computer Attitude Scale (CAS) was extended by including the social influence component, to examine whether social norms affect the acceptance of technology by teachers. Findings from 110 trainee-teachers revealed that their attitudes toward technology are positive. These attitudes constitute the way they like and intend to use technology, their perception of its usefulness in their daily tasks, and the control they perceived to have over technology while using it in engineering disciplines. The findings also confirm that social influence is an important predictor of trainee teachers’ attitudes toward using technology. Overall, the study provides a new influential factor (social) that could be merged with the other four major components (affect, perceived usefulness, perceived control, and behavioral intention) of CAS in conducting future research. The results of this study further provide useful knowledge that extends prior arguments concerning teachers’ attitudes toward using technology in teaching with respect to age, gender, and disciplines. More specifically, the study, theoretically, contributes to research practice in technology acceptance, by extending the computer attitude scale (CAS), with social influence as an additional important factor to be considered when conducting future research. Therefore, an extended CAS is established for exploring newer research in this domain. Policymakers and designers of teacher professional development will be informed of these findings that will accelerate initiatives of technology integration of engineering education in developing countries and other similar contexts.