ICT Resource Accessibility and Competencies In Usage After The Covid-19 Partial Closure of Pre-Tertiary Schools In Ghana: Administrators’ Perspective

Abstract

School administrators’ technological competencies serve as an essential element in school excellence. As a lead for curriculum implementation, school administrators anchor technological integration in the school settings and operations, curriculum and pedagogy and create an enabling environment for ICT development competencies between and among teachers and students. As a result, this study aimed to investigate the ICT resource accessibility and pre-tertiary administrators’ competencies in usage after the covid-19 partial closure of schools in Ghana. The study used a sequential explanatory mixed-method approach and a descriptive survey design. The target population was 70 Public Senior High School (PSHS) administrators in the five in the Birim Central Municipality. The census survey was used to include all the 70 PSHS administrators, expert purposive sampling technique used for selection of 10 respondents to be interviewed, whiles the 60 PSHS were required to complete the questionnaire. The study revealed that computers were the most accessible ICT equipment in the school but were without internet accessibility and connectivity for administrative work. Furthermore, the study showed that school administrators had a low level of competency in using the Microsoft Office suite and internet application tools. Furthermore, ICT accessibility and competency can statistically predict the use of ICT by school administrators to facilitate administrative work. As a result, there is statistically significant impact of administrators' ICT accessibility and competency on the use of ICT in the SHSs in the Birim Central Municipality. Therefore, school administrators need to pursue competency-based programmes in ICT because the confidence in using a system is directly related to the user's competence in using the technology system, which translates into perceived ease of use.