The effect of foreign language teachers' level of technology integration on students' development of higher-order thinking skills

Although, the positive effect of technology on students' learning has been well documented over the years (Liu, Moore, Graham & Lee, 2002; Miangah & Nezarat, 2012; Zhao, 2013), not much has been said of the teachers' ability to integrate technology as a tool to help students develop their Higher-Order Thinking Skills (HOTS). Nonetheless, the need for teachers to successfully integrate technology into their teaching is vital in developing and fostering 21st century skills in the language classroom (Harris, Mishra & Koehler, 2009). This mixed-methods study investigated the effect of foreign language teachers' level of technology integration on students' development of HOTS for the purpose of fostering global competent learners (NEA, 2007). The study involved foreign language teachers from school districts on the East Coast. Data were collected through an online survey, the LoTi Digital-Age Survey for Teachers (Moersch, 1994). Three one-way analyses of variances (ANOVA) were used to measure the differences in the teachers' Level of Technology Implementation (LoTi), Personal Computer Use (PCU) and Current Instructional Practices (CIP) based on their level of proficiency teaching assignment(checkpoint A, B and/or C as described by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL, 2012). Three Separate Stepwise Multiple Regression analyses were used to examine the effect of teachers' demographics on their LoTi, PCU and CIP levels. A multi-case study was conducted based on four classrooms observations of three of the participating teachers using criterion sampling (Sandelowski, 2000). The data were coded to provide insights on students' higher-order thinking skills fostered during those lessons based on the technology used. The results indicated that foreign language teachers' current technology integration level is not fostering students' HOTS development. The findings revealed a significant positive correlation between variables that contribute to the foreign language teachers' level of technology integration. The outcomes of the study also indicated that foreign language teachers' perceptions of their current level of technology integration are higher than their actual level. The findings of the study have major implications for foreign language teachers, schools' administrators and policy makers in their quest to equip students for the 21st century global challenges.