Teachers’ beliefs about technology integration in early childhood education: A meta-ethnographical synthesis of qualitative research

Abstract

There is a body of evidence suggesting that instead of concentrating only on teaching and learning (the education task), teachers believe that their tasks are to care for their students social, emotional, and physical needs (the caring task), and to raise them to be and become functional members of society (the socialization task). However, this diversity has not been acknowledged in teachers' beliefs research done in technology integration context. To provide a more nuanced understanding of the variety and role of teachers' beliefs about technology integration this study has synthesized 35 qualitative empirical research studies via the method of meta-ethnography. The focus is on early childhood education (ECE) as so far, no reviews on early childhood teachers' beliefs have been conducted. The synthesis suggests, that education, socialization, and care all have a meaningful role in teachers' beliefs towards technology use in ECE. Each of these tasks and dimensions were identified from teachers' beliefs for or against integrating technology into ECE practices. The synthesis also suggests, that teachers’ beliefs are shaped by macro- and micro-contextual factors including national educational policies and personal experiences. Implications for teacher education are discussed.