A study of teacher receptivity to change and school culture

The consultation papers and reports published by the Government in 1998 & 1999 made it explicit that IT would be formally introduced into primary schools (EC, 1999, 2000; EMB, 1998; 1999; Education Department, 1998, 1999). The school would be transformed into a lively and creative environment where students become learners with high initiative, creativity and an inquiry mind. In such an environment, students will construct their knowledge through, for example, retrieving information from the web-sites. In such a way, students will be given the opportunity to take control of the learning and become independent learners. There was a need, it said, to have information technology education reform and teachers should move towards this direction of thinking. To respond to these, this study examines 'Teacher Receptivity to Change' (TRTC) and 'School Culture' (SC) and the relationships between them when 'Information Technology for Education Reform' (IT) is introduced and implemented in Hong Kong primary schools. Accordingly, the study investigated the following aspects, formulated into five research questions, as follows: (1) How receptive are teachers to change when IT is implemented at their schools? (2) What is the culture of the schools involved in the study? (3) What are the relationships between TRTC and SC? (4) What are teachers' views towards IT in Hong Kong? (5) What are the impacts of TRTC on IT implementation?;There were two phases in this study, namely, pilot study and the main study. In the pilot stage, 1457 teachers in 66 Hong Kong primary schools were invited to complete a two-part questionnaire. Nine of the schools were used as case study schools where data were collected by multiple research means. The purpose of the pilot study was to obtain an overview of TRTC and SC related issues and to pilot the usefulness of the research instruments. It was found that the instruments were useful as the means for the investigation. The data collected were examined and it was decided that three of the nine schools should be studied further. Therefore, in the main study, the research only focused on the three case study schools, representing high, medium, and low academically. A number of research instruments were used, including interviews, observations, field notes, and document analysis in the purpose of achieving a detailed understanding of the aspects raised in the research questions. (Abstract shortened by UMI.).