Abstract
The wealth of information available on TENET, the Texas Education Network, and the Internet has the potential to bring dramatic changes to science classrooms throughout Texas. Networking technology removes the limits of classrooms walls and opens an abundance of resources for students and teachers. In a survey, the investigator proposed four general questions to ascertain how K-1 2 Texas science teachers perceived their opportunities to facilitate such changes: 1 )What is the availability of computers and networks to science classrooms in Texas? 2)What is the extent of implementation (level of use) of TENET and Internet resources by the surveyed science teachers? 3)What are science teachers' perceptions concerning the effectiveness of these networking resources? 4)What obstacles do the surveyed science teachers perceive as frustrations which must be overcome for more appropriate and efficient use? The investigator surveyed a stratified sample of 277 Texas K12 science teachers to analyze their perceptions concerning the four research questions, with specific checklist questions related to availability, implementation, and effectiveness. A final section allowed free response to a question addressing obstacles and frustrations concerning network access. Anonymity was carefully maintained throughout the process. The response rate for return of the survey was 45%. In general, 99% of the science teachers responding had computers available to them and 73% had networks available. The issue, though, was that the teachers did not perceive those as accessible, since the computers were often in the library or computer lab rather than in their classrooms. Most of the respondents had never accessed TENET (60%) or any other server (65%). The major categories of obstacles that limited teachers' use of networking included lack of accessible equipment, lack of adequate time, difficulty with access, and lack of necessary training. The investigator offers an analysis of each category of concern as well as recommendations to facilitate more effective implementation of networking technology.
Edwards, Eleanor Evelyn (1995). Texas science teachers' use of TENET and the internet. Master's thesis, Texas A&M University. Available electronically from
https : / /hdl .handle .net /1969 .1 /ETD -TAMU -1995 -THESIS -E39.