An Exploratory Study of Physical Education Teachers’ Perceptions of the Barriers to Employing Technology

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to explore physical educators’ perspectives on the barriers to employing technology in physical education instruction. The participants of this study were 253 elementary, middle, and high school physical education teachers who taught in the state of Georgia. The participants completed an online survey that was derived from an extensive review of literature regarding barriers to integrating technology during instruction. The survey used a Likert scale asking participants to respond with a level of agreement and disagreement regarding specific barriers and included an open-ended response asking for additional barriers. Data were analyzed with the use of descriptive statistics and a one-way analysis of variance. This study found that class size, budget, and lack of resources were the main barriers perceived by physical educators, whereas lack of knowledge and lack of skill were not perceived as barriers to employing technology during instruction. Both age and years of experience had a significant main effect on the barriers of lack of knowledge, skill, and training. Additional barriers reported were lack of connectivity, lack of desire, and lack of time. The results of this study explore and highlight the significant barriers to employing technology in physical education instruction. Further research is warranted to support the need for meaningful implementation of technology to make the learning environment more dynamic, customizable, and accessible for both teachers and students.