Teachers as Key Actors in Implementing Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in Teaching and Learning: Findings from ICILS 2018.

In spring 2018, Luxembourg participated for the first time in the International Computer and Information Literacy Study (ICILS) run by the International Association for the Evaluation of Educational Achievement (IEA). In the present chapter, we focus on the key ICILS 2018 results for Luxembourg teachers. Concretely, we show the degree of Information and Communications Technology (ICT) use in their teaching and learning, based on an international comparison. Moreover, we present differences in the use of ICT related with teachers’ characteristics, such as their view on the role of ICT in practice, their perceived expertise and self-efficacy with ICT, initial and continuous training opportunities with ICT, and use of digital tools and software in class. We also investigate the role of schools’ ICT resources and a collaborative environment for ICT, as well as school principals’ focus on an explicit ICT policy plan and vision. After analyzing the Luxembourg teacher data, we identify four main factors that are significantly related to the reported use of ICT in teaching and learning: (1) teachers’ positive views about ICT use and its role in practice; (2) teachers’ expertise in terms of experience with ICT and a higher level of perceived ICT self-efficacy; (3) teachers frequent use of digital learning tools and software in their class; and 4) teachers working in a school where ICT is considered as a priority in teaching. The level of ICT resources in a school also proves important, although the majority of teachers indicate this is already high. In short: Luxembourg’s first participation in the ICILS brings relevant insights into what can support teachers’ pedagogical use of ICT, so that in turn they can facilitate its use by students in class, and foster their Computer and Information Literacy (CIL) and Computational Thinking (CT) competences.