Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 1 Abstract The purpose of this research was to address the current and prospective views on educational technology (ET) in order to discover the difficulties and develop its utilization in Omani higher education. The main instruments used to carry out this research were two questionnaires: the faculty members' questionnaire, and the technical/administrative staff questionnaire. One hundered and fifty-nine participants were involved in the study. They represented all educational technologists who have been with the public and private Omani higher education institutions. The findings show a tendency for future expansion with less expensive technologies and the need for training. Some impediments of ET use were also found. Important recommendations from this study include: the need to support Omani higher education institutions with technical and human resources to increase and activate the use/number of new instructional media and equipment. Keywords Educational technology, Utilization, Impediments, Training, Oman, Higher education.
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 2 Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education institutions and their future prospective Introduction Educational media and technology (ET) play a significant role within the teaching and learning process in higher educational institutions and is an important part of educational systems and processes. ET helps in improving educational methods and delivery and the quality of teaching and learning. However, ET should be planned in a strategic way in order to employ its capabilities to reach cost-effectiveness standards. The Sultanate of Oman is situated in the south-eastern part of the Arabian Peninsula. The Omani educational system is semi-central with basic education curriculum consists of three stages. Basic education in Oman is free at all levels but it is not compulsory. The Omani open higher education gives many opportunities to the learners. There are for example courses of four-year duration at teacher-training in addition to technical and banking institutes. There are more than twenty universities and colleges in both public and private sectors. These institutions increasingly rely on educational and information technologies to develop their students' skills and organizational infrastructures. Experience shows that Oman needs a vision by which its higher education can adapt ET. The purpose of this research is to review and analyze some indicators and trends to determine the future needs for development of ET in Oman. Literature Review Educational Technology and Learning Research, in the 1990s indicates that educational technologies such as instructional radio and films were as effective as traditional classroom instruction (Hannafin and Savenye, 1993). Computer based education, when used in "tutorial" or "drill and practice" mode, leads to
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 3 equivalent student's achievement when compared to other kinds of classroom methods such as personal tutoring (Viadero, 1997). Likewise, one of the first Omani experimental research conducted on on-line instruction (OLI) at Sultan Qaboos University concluded that OLI is equally effective in students' achievement as traditional teaching methods (Al Musawi & Abdelraheem, 2004b). However, studies have revealed a modest but positive relationship between technology and achievement at all levels of education and subject areas. Research also indicates that students in a technology-rich environment write more, finish units of study more quickly, show more self-motivation, work cooperatively, express positive attitudes about the future, and are better able to understand and represent information in a variety of forms (Viadero, 1997). New research shows the overall effects of technology on student outcomes may be greater than previously thought (Kulik, 2002). Educational technology is generally recognized as a powerful means to boost student achievement (Waxman, Connell, & Gray, 2002). There can be little doubt that technology is very important for all students; moreover, it can be critical for students with special needs (Lee, 2000; Edyburn, Higgins, & Boone, 2005). In fact, school use and access to new and current technologies is on the rise and more and more states in the U.S. have established technology standards for students, teachers, and administrators (Fox, 2005). Literary evidence suggests that teaching and technology processes either may directly impact student outcomes or may interact with technology features and indirectly impact outcomes (Waxman, Lin, and Michko, 2003). Research also indicates that appropriate technology use can be very beneficial to increase educational productivity (Byrom & Bingham, 2001; Clements & Sarama, 2003; Kulik, 2002; Waxman, Connell, & Gray, 2002). Coppola (2004) elaborates that without strong teacher knowledge of ways to use ET, precious instruction time can be wasted (p.
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 4 4). To sum, it could be argued that ET may not directly affect students' achievement but it improves their learning styles and thinking processes. Educational Technology Issues The support for ET by administrative/faculty members of staff at the Omani higher education system has become more positive. Educational technology is actively developing in terms of staffing, equipment, and finance due to two main factors: improvements and new acquisition of modern technology and software and improved administration support for media use in teaching. However, it faces serious challenges which are insufficient or limited materials/supplies/resources/space, inexperienced personnel, limited/inadequate training of staff, and need to employ new skilled staff (Al Musawi, 2002). These results are corroborated by previous studies which concluded that ET at Omani higher education is characterized by the underutilization of advanced technology; and unsatisfactory staff skills to fulfill the required level (Al-Hajri, 2000; Al Khawaldi, 2000). This can be partially attributed to the administrative leadership because as technology moves into institutions at an ever faster pace, administrators are feeling overwhelmed (Trotter, 1997). Studies show that teachers are, in many instances, short of the required preparation time to apply the new educational innovations. In addition, many teachers don't use, and sometimes resist, the use of technology. Possible explanations for such resistance are: poorly designed software, technophobia, doubt that technology improves learning outcomes, fear of redundancy where lecturer s replacement by technology, resentment of the technology as a competitor for student's attention, and complacency with old practice by senior faculty (Hannafin and Savenye, 1993; Akinyemi and Al Musawi, 2002). In response to the-above mentioned issues, Boyd (1997) recommends that institutions employ a technology trainer. A clear trend towards technical/faculty staff increase along with a need to employ staff with
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 5 specific specializations and qualifications are reported in the Omani context (Al Musawi, 2002). These findings are supported by the need to initiate college/university media specialist certification/accreditation programs (Abu Jaber & Osman, 1996; Al Khawaldi, 2000). Research also explains that new technologies require new skills; and that Omani higher education institutions are falling behind in professional development. There is, therefore, a strong need for updating and retraining staff and teachers (Abu Jaber & Osman, 1996). This implies that inservice teachers will need to update their skills by acquiring new skills in order to manage educational innovations. This is corroborated in the literature which states that to use technology teachers need more and teacher training on technology (Boyd, 1997; Bialo & Soloman, 1997; Zehr, 1997). To deal with issues raised above, more higher education institutions are requiring administrators, faculty, and technicians to take technology courses (Trotter, 1997). Teacher preparation programs are important because the future teacher will depend on the technological skills for both personal productivity and for instructional activities and these should be part of the required courses for prospective teachers (Kook, 1997). Educational Technology: The Omani Context Omani efforts of utilizing educational and information technology in higher education proceed rapidly regardless of some issues resulted from the technical, logistical, and human factors (Al Musawi and Abdelraheem, 2004a). Students currently navigate easily through the Internet searching for information and knowledge resources and get linked with their counterparts in any part of the world through the Internet (Al Rawahy, 2001). Sultan Qaboos University (SQU) adopted e-learning by providing its faculty members with WebCT tools combined with face-toface instruction. An increase in the number of on-line courses being offered and their users is noticeable. Internet instructional uses by SQU faculty members are however, mostly limited to
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 6 obtaining information and rich resources. This suggests that they should be trained and encouraged to broaden their use beyond the present status (Abdelraheem and Al Musawi, 2003; and Al Musawi and Abdelraheem, 2004b). Major results show that e-learning is needed and its standards must be set before it can be developed, disseminated and diffused. This might help to overcome problems of high enrolment and limited access to Omani higher education (Al Musawi and Akinyemi, 2002). In this research, several questions have been raised. They are centered upon how higher education institutions' key personnel such as specialists, technicians, and administrators perceive current and future issues regarding ET. Research Objective This research was designed to assess the current status of ET in order to discover the difficulties of implementation and further develop its utilization in Omani higher education. It also aimed at determining indicators which help to discover the future trends in ET fields. Significance of the Research The need for such research is vital for the following reasons: To explore the extent to which ET services are utilized by Omani higher education institutions. To discover the range to which these services are likely to be developed in the next decade. Research Questions Several questions have been raised as follows: 1. What are the current quantitative levels of technical and technological equipment/facilities?
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 7 2. To what extent is the current use of instructional software/equipment effective? 3. What are the impediments of ET use at higher education institutions? 4. What are the needs for future training resources and university programs in ET field? Research Methods The main instruments were two questionnaires: the faculty members' questionnaire, and the technical/administrative staff questionnaire. They were developed by producing a list of potential issues of ET derived from standardized surveys that have been previously used and validated at international organizations. The face validity of the list was calculated by presenting it to a group of referees in the area of ET. The experts made some modifications on the original sections and items and added some others. There were four sections for the faculty members' questionnaire incorporating: (1) demographics; (2) career development; (3) ability to use technology; and (4) training needs. The total sections of the technical/administrative staff questionnaire were the same in addition to one more section on quantities, budget, and staff issues. While all other sections of both questionnaires were designed using rating scale of statements, the first and the second sections, along with some parts of the questionnaires, were generally in the form of openended questions. This is due to the specific nature of the questions posed asking for quantities, difficulties, and impediments. The reliability coefficient was measured by alpha-cronbach and it was found between 0.85-0.89. Research Design and Statistical analysis In this research, the dependent variable is current and future prospective uses of ET measured by the sample's responses to the questionnaire items, whereas the independent variables are: Institution: (two levels: university and college). Type of Institution: (two levels: public and private).
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 8 Age: (five levels: 20-29, 30-39, 40-49, 50-59, and 60-65). Nationality: (two levels: Omani and expatriate). Gender (two levels: male and female). Job Area: (five levels: Educational only, Educational/Academic, Technical only, Administrative only, and Technical/Administrative). Qualification: (four levels: PhD, MA, BA, and Ed. Diploma). Job (two levels: faculty and Technical/Administrative). Analytic descriptive approach was used for the questionnaires. The following statistical treatments were used in data analysis: percentages, means, standard deviations, t-test, ANOVA, Pearson Correlation Coefficient, Scheffe test, and Chi square test. Participants The population of this study included ET specialists, administrators, and ET/learning resources center s staff representing all educational technologists who have been with the public and private Omani higher education institutions. The public higher education institutions include: Sultan Qaboos University, Colleges of Education at the Ministry of Higher Education, Higher Technology Colleges at the Ministry of Manpower, and Health Institutes at the Ministry of Health. The private HE institutions include: nine university and colleges. The two forms of the questionnaire were distributed to all institutions with specific instructions on how to complete the questionnaire. Participants were 159 faculty, technical, and administrative members of staff who responded to the questionnaire. This sample represents more than 45% of the total population as indicated by institutions' statistics. It should be noted that some returned questionnaires had some missing values and this has slightly affected the data analysis process. Table 1 describes the participants distribution in relation to demographic variables: institution,
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 9 type of institution, age, nationality, gender, job area, and qualification. Only three variables; namely: job, type of institution and qualification, were used for analysis purposes because they are more influential than other variables. Conclusions and Recommendations This research was originally initiated to assess the current and prospective views on ET in order to discover the difficulties and develop its utilization in Omani higher education. On the technical resources level, it was found that almost all equipment/facilities are currently in the range of (5-20) in numbers; and several institutions lack most of these equipment and facilities, specifically the new technologies such as Intranet points and multimedia labs. A tendency for future expansion on the portable, new, and less expensive technologies was found. The need to increase the quantities of updated technologies/software/equipment was clearly substantiated by the participants' written comments in the open-ended parts of the questionnaires. These findings imply an awareness to expand on new technological innovations. These findings corroborate to a great extent literature results conducted by Al Rawahy (2001); Al Musawi and Akinyemi (2002), and Al Musawi and Abdelraheem (2004a, and 2004b). On training level, it was found that participants of most levels of qualification attended (0-5) workshops. All training areas were perceived by the participants as important; and BA holders are more in need for training than the MA holders. The need for training was corroborated by the participants' written comments in the open-ended parts of the questionnaires. These findings support studies findings of Abu Jaber & Osman (1996), Boyd (1997), Bialo & Soloman (1997), and Zehr (1997). These findings are also substantiated by research of Trotter (1997), Kook (1997), Boyd (1997), Abu Jaber & Osman (1996); Al-Hajri (2000), Al Khawaldi (2000), and Al Musawi (2002). On the use level, the participants perceive using (16) instructional software/equipment in the classrooms as
Current status of educational technologies at Omani higher education 10 indispensable to the classroom teaching in their institutions. They also perceive (6) of their abilities to use the instructional software in teaching and workplace as advanced. Further, it was found that PhD holders are more able to use instructional software and that the participants perceive (4) of their abilities to use new, electronic, and portable instructional equipment/facilities as advanced. This finding partially supports Abdelraheem and Al Musawi (2003) findings. However, the participants' frequency of using instructional software and equipment was weak Moreover, only one impediment (Little Number of Fixed/Portable Equipment) was perceived by faculty members as important whereas (4) impediments were perceived as important by the Technical/Administrative staff. Some of these impediments are generally reviewed by the work of Akinyemi and Al Musawi (2002). Lastly, participants' written comments in terms of the most important issues are quoted below. These comments emphasizes the need for training and technological novelty: Raising the awareness of senior administrators on ET ; Employment of only well versed expatriate faculty in ET ; Keeping abreast of the most update technology ; Appointment of technical (not academic) supervisors for multimedia labs ; Speeding up the development of ET area ; and, Increase coordination amongst HE institution in regard to ET. Based on the results of this study, the followings are recommended: 1. Omani higher education institutions should be supported with technical and human resources to increase and activate the use/number of new instructional media and equipment. 2. Intensive systematic in-service training programs should be conducted for staff in areas of new ET design, production, use, and evaluation.