Moving forward: supporting university teachers in technology integration into teaching
Technology keeps advancing and continuously offers both new possibilities and challenges for the purposeful technology integration into teaching. However, the shift from the intention of technology integration to actual teaching practices with technology has been a persistent challenge for university teachers. Hence, this dissertation aims to illuminate the linkage between the intention and teaching practices with technology. Four knowledge gaps were addressed. First, since universities consider blended learning as a part of their educational vision after the COVID-19 pandemic, an integrative conceptual literature review was set out to clarify the concept of blended learning. Second, given the influence of both individual and contextual aspects on teachers’ decision-making on technology integration, both aspects were explored in the university context. Third, given the importance of teachers’ knowledge and skills for technology integration, and that existing Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) surveys were not adapted to university teachers, a TPACK survey for university teachers was developed and validated. Fourth, given the importance of environmental support (e.g., the educational support) for technology integration, a Professional Development intervention with a co-design component was developed and evaluated to obtain new insights into how both individual and contextual aspects influence teachers’ decision-making on technology integration. Overall, the dissertation provided insights into the key role that both individual aspects and contextual aspects play in university teachers’ technology integration into teaching. The contributions are theoretical, methodological, and empirical. These insights could be the springboard for universities in moving forward toward a more technology-enhanced education.