Creating a Digital Ecosystem for the Gifted Education Classroom

Abstract

To date, there is a paucity of empirical research documenting the essential environmental conditions that must exist before teachers of the gifted will integrate technology into their instruction. To establish baseline data documenting the frequency with which teachers of the gifted use technology for instructional purposes and to build theory describing the critical environmental conditions that support technology integration, researchers administered the Perceptions of Computers and Technology (PCT) survey to 255 teachers of the gifted. This survey measured teachers’ self-reported use of technology and other factors that contributed to computer integration. Results suggested five conditions (general school support, infrastructure, professional development, teacher attitude, and teacher personal use) are necessary for teachers of the gifted to create a classroom digital ecosystem. In this model, personal use accounted for the greatest amount of unique variability. Conclusions are drawn, new lines of inquiry are posed, and implications are discussed.