PERCEPTIONS ON THE INFLUENCE OF INTEGRATION OF INFORMATION COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY IN TEACHING ON STUDENTS’ ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE IN PUBLIC SECONDARY SCHOOLS IN NAKURU COUNTY, KENYA

Abstract

Information Communication Technology (ICT) is increasingly becoming a more and more powerful tool for education and economicdevelopment world over. ICT can be a catalyst by providing tools whichteachers use to improve teaching and by giving learners access to electronic media that makeconcepts clearer and more accessible. ICT is used for capacity development and citizenempowerment.A study byComputers For Schools Kenya showed that, the entire education system was characterised by a very low integration of ICT, it is not clear whether public secondary schools were part of the study and if so whether the integration of ICT in teaching had any influence on students academic performance.This study examined the influence of integration of ICT in teaching on students’ academic performance in public secondary schools in Nakuru County, Kenya. This study adopted the descriptive survey research design. The teacher during instruction is involved in active ICT integration that motivates the learner into understanding and retaining the knowledge and skills acquired. In order to adequately capture the influence of ICT integration on teaching and students’ performance, data were collected using Teachers’ Questionnaire (TQ), Principals’ Interview Schedule (PIS), and a school Observation Schedule (OS). The target population was all the 274 public secondary schools in Nakuru County. A total of 81 schools were randomly selected. The principal of the school selected were interviewed. A teacher from each of the five cluster subjects offered were randomly selected making a total of 405 teachers to fill the Questionnaire for Teachers (QT). Thus a total sample of 486 respondents was selected from a teacher population of 1644. An observation schedule was completed for each sampled school.Data was analysed.The results findings indicated: (i) that ICT facilities were inadequate, (ii) that teachers had only basic or no ICT skills, (iii) that there was low level of integration of ICT in teaching or none at all, (iv) that financial constraints and lack of facilities were some of the challenges teachers faced in integration of ICT in teaching, and most importantly (v) that there was a positive significant relationship between integration of ICT and students’ academic performance at 0.05 alpha significance level.The study concluded that integration of ICT not only influences teaching but also leads to significant improvement on students’ academic performance.