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INVESTIGATING HOW TEACHERS IN PRIMARY SCHOOLS IN SAUDI ARABIA WERE TRAINED TO USE INTERACTIVE WHITEBOARDS AND WHAT THEIR TRAINING NEEDS WERE

Azzah Alghamdi, Prof Steve Higgins


The aim of this paper is to present some of the quantitative findings from a PhD study related to teachers’ training in using IWBs in primary schools which participated in Tatweer project in the city of Jeddah, in Saudi Arabia. Therefore, this paper concentrates on investigating how Saudi teachers in primary schools were trained to use IWBs and examines gender differences, extent of training, the types of training they need, and their training preferences. The sample of this study consisted of 587 teachers (286 males and 301 females) from primary Tatweer schools in the city of Jeddah during the academic year 2014-2015. The quantitative findings of this study indicated that the lack of providing training courses to Saudi teachers had an important effect on their IWB skills and satisfaction about their level of training, leading them to depend on themselves or their colleagues to improve their capabilities. Moreover, training in both technical and pedagogical skills as well as providing support from the school administration is essential for effective integrating of IWBs in classrooms. Female teachers’ responses in this study indicated greater need for training in effective teaching techniques using IWBs and greater preference for self-training methods than males.