Competence of 1st year Education Students in the use of ICT and the

Degree of Utilization of Computers

A Research Presented to

The Research Committee, Department of Teacher Education

UM Tagum College, Tagum City

In Partial Fulfillment

Of the Requirements for English – 201

Bonghanoy, Ericka

Cuevas, Lakambini

Duarte, Lynus

Aritalia, Mark Anthony

March 2019
 Chapter 1

THE PROBLEM AND ITS SETTING

Introduction

Information and communication technology (ICT) refers to information-

handling tools used to generate, store, process, spread and share

information. The use of ICT in education is clearly not a new rally for the

protection and promotion of life. There are many pieces of evidence that the

use of ICT in education provides useful pedagogical, social and economic

benefits (Marcial& de la Rama, 2015). Ezekoka& Gertrude (2015) wrote that

“ICT is not designed to replace face-to-face interaction; it is designed to

supplement it by allowing people to communicate anytime and anywhere “,

which means that ICT is not designed to replace the face to face interaction

between teachers and learners, but ICT is designed to support the learning

and complements and enables teachers and learners to communicate

wherever and whenever. Soparat&Klaysom (2015) stated that ICT as a

learning content project-based learning does not only support the

development of main competencies of the learners. Nowadays, network,

computer and internet access are used more than just search for data, email,

or chat, but should be used to support the student’s education and should be

focused on the content of the knowledge and competence.

ICT literacy is referred as one of the skills required for become

successful in the 21 century. ICT literacy is defined as the ability to effectively

evaluate, navigation, and build the information by using various digital

technologies (Wilson, et al., 2015).

 A study in Northern Border University, Saudi Arabia states that ICT

adaption has an impact towards student’s academic performance and it

reveals that students who score higher grades in GPA are more interested in

ICT than their colleagues who score lower grades. Brighter students are

therefore more likely to embrace ICT. Furthermore, ICT requires

concentration of the participants, and this makes people to remain brighter to

embrace the technology. It was also revealed in this study that social science

students readily adopt ICT more than their other counterparts (Alandejani

& Almadani, 2018).

In the Philippines, the Department of Education had initiated the DepEd

Computerization Program (DCP) provided the public schools with appropriate

technologies that would enhance the teaching-learning process. It is among

DepEd’s efforts to raise the ICT literacy to learners, teachers, and school

heads by integrating ICT in the school system by providing laboratory

packages to secondary schools and electronic classrooms to elementary

schools. (DepEd 2018) The Computerization Project was implemented and

managed successfully in the recipient public high schools. The project

components which include provision of laboratory equipment, and capability

buildings for teachers were appreciated and fully utilized by the recipient

public high schools in accordance with its purpose of building ICT literacy and

interest among public school teachers in order to integrate ICT in education

and improve the teaching and learning process. In general, the project was

effective in attaining its objectives of bridging the digital divide and building

ICT literacy and interest to the teachers of the recipient public high schools

(Lorenzo, 2018).
 A scholastic journal in presented by Gupeteo (2015) from Ateneo de

Davao University shows thatit is still in the process of starting to adopt ICT in

education. Schools are usually the source of ICT for them comprising 37.4%

and 18.4% are using ICT on their own. The number of hours spends for

computers every month ranges from 1–420 hours and most of the teachers

spend one to fifty (50) hours every month which is 41.5%.

The researcher has not come across of a study that dealt with the

competence of 1s year - Education students in the use of ICT. It is in this

context that the researcher is interested to determine whether the

competence of these students in the use of ICT in University of Mindanao –

Tagum Campus as this can affect the intended beneficiaries of this study.

Actions plans can be developed to augment the competence of 1 st year

Education students in the use of ICT, thus need to conduct this study.
 THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

This study is anchored on the theory of Cunningham (1998), which

stated that the utilization of computers in the educational system offers the

most effective hope of compressing the leap forward. It helps in achieving a

smooth and efficient operation as well as an essential aspect of the

instructional program.

Brazdeikis (2005) described ICT technical competence as revealed by

the competence on the use and application of information and communication

technologies that it should be treated as a dynamic structure that depends on

the technological and organizational level the educator works in. It is a

complex set of individual’s knowledge, abilities, skills, understanding, values

and personal qualities that determine positive results of individual’s

performance on the use of ICT.

It has become a truism to say that people live in an information age.

Education systems and their infantry – the classroom teachers – are facing

increasing pressure to follow the lead of industry and commerce, and adopt

Information Communication Technology in a major way. The need to better

exploit the teaching and learning potential of ICT is widely accepted and

supported. However, to date, this potential has not been realized in any

significant way, particularly the potential to transform how, what, where and

why students learn what they do (Department of Education Science and

Training, 2005).

According to Moorthy (2002), basic ICT skills, such as use of email and

basic word processing and spreadsheet applications, have over the last few
years become part of a standard set of skills for the majority of participants in

the job market. Indeed, results from a particular survey suggest that more

than two-thirds (70 percent) of respondents believe the great majority (greater

than 60 percent) of current employees have the basic ICT skills necessary for

email communication and use of basic office applications such as word

processing and spreadsheets.

McCampbell (2001) cited that the proliferation of computer use in

private businesses and public institutions, particularly in certain vertical

industries such as finance and in functional areas such as back-office

administration, has reached almost full penetration. Consequently, use of ICT

has become a main component of our daily business lives, a necessary skill

needed in the job market.

Kolding (2007) also stressed that, the penetration of PCs in the home

due to rapidly falling prices has made the device a commodity and people that

do not possess even the most basic skills increasingly a rarity. Added to this

have been the strong penetration of mobile phones and the expanded

functionalities of these beyond simply making and receiving voice calls, such

as text messaging, browsing the Internet and taking photos. These devices

are being absorbed into our everyday lives and with it have come the skills to

operate them.
Conceptual Framework

Show in Figure 1 are the independent variable and dependent variable

of the study. The independent variable is the competence of 1 st year

Education students in use of ICT which has its indicators namely:technical

competence, application, value in the use of ICT (Pizarras, 2017).

The first indicator is technical competence refers to the level of

knowledge and skill of the students related to one or more specific

technologies or technical areas.The second indicator is applicationrefers to

the skills in using ICT applications. Basic computer operations, file

management, networking, word processing, spreadsheet use, information

searching, internet searching, web page creation, email use and digital

imaging and the last indicator is value in the use of ICT refers to the

operation, manipulation of the different kind of technological tools.

The Dependent variable is the degree of utilization of computers which

has its indicators namely: Hardware Use,Software Use (Pizarras 2017)

The first indicator Hardware Use which refers to the tangible object or

ICT facility available in the classroom. And the last indicators isSoftware Use

refers to the program used to present the lesson or used to deliver the activity.
 Independent variables Dependent Variables

Competence of 1st year

The Degree of
BSED - Students in the
Utilization of
use of ICT
Computers
 technical competence
 hardware use
 application
 software use
 value in the use of ICT

Figure 1.1 The Conceptual Paradigm of the Study

 Chapter 2

Review of Related Literature

Presented in this section are readings from the related literature,

different books, journals, articles, and internet written by different authors

relevant to the present. The researcher focused on the competence of 1st year

Education students in the use of ICT and the degree of utilization of

computers.

ICT Competence

As indicated by Pizarras (2017) was taken into consideration in the

choice or selection of indicators used in the study. The indicators are technical

competence, application, understanding, value in the use of ICT.

Over the last few decades, the concepts ICT competence and digital

literacy have been used more frequently and are increasingly discussed,

particularly in policy documents and policy-related discussions related to

“what kinds of skills and knowing people should have in a knowledge society,

what to teach young people and how to do so” (Ilomäki, Paavola and Lakkala,

2016).

Information communication technology (ICT) is among the latest

innovations that has revolutionized various operations in the world. It is

particularly important in the field of education since it has recently created

such platforms and opportunities that have facilitated to some extent the

acquisition of knowledge. This phenomenon has been highlighted in this study

which indicates how students view ICT as a component of their study

program. It is particularly important in the field of education since it has

recently created such platforms and opportunities that have facilitated to some

extent the acquisition of knowledge. This phenomenon has been highlighted

in this study which indicates how students view ICT as a component of their

study program. From the results of the questionnaire, it has been evident that

a majority of the respondents’ value ICT, and each of them feels that they

should have the gadgets to be able to adopt ICT more closely (Bashri, 2018).

In Sweden, ICT competence is also used as a foundational concept in

the currently launched national strategy for the digitalization of education. The

overall aim of this strategy is to provide children and students the opportunity

to develop the ability to use and create with digital technology and understand

how digitalization affects the individual and society. Three areas in particular

are in focus: Digital competence for all in the school system, Equal access

and use, and Research and evaluation of the possibilities of digitalization.

Thus, personnel working with children and students should develop the

competence to choose and use appropriate digital tools in education and the

opportunity to develop digital competence during their education and through

workplace training (Swedish Ministry of Education, 2017).

Lachica (2015) reveals that ICTs unravel significant technological

breakthroughs. Technology, whether we like it or not, is a part of our everyday

life. In classroom communication, ICTs are utilized to improve the way

students learn and the way teachers teach. As a driver for change, ICTs

enable actors in classroom communication to cope with the needs and

opportunities in the 21st century. It brings about intellectual development

through collaborative learning that promotes creative thinking and

communication among learners. ICTs changed the way teaching learning

process is done. Teachers are no longer considered as the ultimate source of

knowledge but rather as facilitators of the creation of knowledge and skills.

In a 21st century learning environment, digital electronic

communication technology is the key factor. Teaching and learning has to

center around the innovative use of existing and emerging technologies

(Byabazaire and Busthami, 2018).

Shodganga (2016) synthesizes that there are different ways of

classifying and categorizing ICT usage in the classrooms, the literature

informs a repertoire of using ICT in teaching and learning. Children who

exposed to school ICT programs learned better than children not exposed.

Also ICT was found to make school more interesting. Also when students

participated in the ICT programs, programs were more effective. Majority of

the students and teachers had positive reaction to ICT programs. Teachers

and principals believed that teaching through ICT is better than traditional way

of teaching. Whenever teachers used follow up activities, student’s attitudes

toward ICT 52 programs were found are higher. The above all, all the

research findings revealed that ICT programs by and large have been utilized

in comprehensive manner in countries for the benefit of the students. In India

the utilization of ICT within the classroom seems to be meagre. The reasons

for under-utilization of ICT were manifold.

Marcial and dela Rama (2018) states that the ICT competency of

college education students in Region 7 is starting to utilize ICT tools in

understanding the educational policy, curriculum and assessment,

pedagogical approach, operations, classroom organization and

administration, and teacher professional development. Teacher educators in

Region 7 are applying the basic tools, but they do not possess the necessary

skills towards innovative teaching and learning. ICT competency may improve

positive pedagogical benefits among the future professional teachers. It is

recommended to revisit collaborative efforts between the government,

academe, and industry. The Philippine government through CHED should

implement its mandate in integrating ICT in the teaching and learning process

seriously.

Ushering the Philippine education into the 21st century and enhancing

the teaching and learning is the DepEd Computerization Program that is

providing computer laboratory packages to secondary schools, e-

classrooms to elementary schools and laptop units to mobile teachers.

Through this program, ICT would eventually be integrated in the

formal school system to raise the ICT literacy among learners, teachers,

and school heads. One of its strategies is to utilize ICT in upgrading the

quality of teaching and learning; INSET; continuous formative

assessment; and in designing and implementing remedial actions for students

who are left behind, among others (UNESCO, 2015).

Technical competence

The main line of the theoretical and investigate characteristics for

university education such as they appear within scientific literature in the

education area. Nowadays is more and more present within educational field

the using of ICT (Bucharest, 2015).

 According to Rheman (2000) as cited by Glosgow (2016) that a

number of new ICT courses had been introduced in the different field in

education. In a follow-up study, Rheman (2008) noted that there are programs

that have become inter-disciplinary to extend coverage to different areas

including ICT-related courses. Importance and role of ICT have also been

pointed out by other studies. The lack of technical competencies of the

students towards the use of ICT was considered to be the most frequently

mentioned concern in career opportunities and suggested expanded

treatment of the ICT component in education programs. Similarly, the

aforementioned review has indicated the necessity of strengthening the ICT

component in the information studies education programs in higher education.

Various research studies have pointed out inadequacies of coverage of ICT

component and lack of ICT skills among students.

In a recent study conducted by Hanson-Baldauf and Hassell (2015)

investigated if students were adequately prepared for the task of integrating

technology and skills into instruction. The study explored the perceived

competences of students and their use of ICT. The participants that have

background skills in using ICT reported the highest level in technical

competencies. The level of awareness and use approximated the frequency

with which the students were exposed through their coursework. The

respondents reported that while technologies such as wikis, blogs, and

podcast were discussed, the students did not have sufficient opportunity for

hands-on experience. They felt that they were not adequately prepared to use

emergent Web 2.0 technologies.

 However, people tend to overrate or underrate their own levels of

competence. Thus, the ICT skill test contains 42 tasks grouped into 17 ICT

fields. It was conducted with upper comprehensive and upper secondary level

school students. Using factor analysis, three ICT skills factors were created:

basic digital skills, advance technical skills, and professional ICT skills. The

performance in the ICT skill test was also divided by gender, as the male

students and teachers outperformed the female students and teacher. It

argues that to compare the ICT and the validity of the assessments, it was

needed to ensure consistency. In addition, in order to diminish the ICT skill

gap among students, interventions using formal education are urgently

needed, and in particular, more attention should be given to student training

and learning (Heidelberg, 2018).

Application

Teaching ICT to students with no prior in computer experience is a

challenge. With all of the different concepts to learn, often present learning

hurdles and student don’t excel. Learning styles have become very influential

within the education field at all levels from kindergarten to graduate school..

Students have different strengths and preferences in the ways they take in

and process information. Proponents of learning style assessment contend

that optimal instruction requires diagnosing individuals’ learning style and

tailoring instruction accordingly. Typically, these assessments of learning

styles ask individuals to evaluate what sort of information presentation they

prefer (Elliot & Shah, 2018).

 The use of technology for ‘networking purposes’ is helping students in

developing informal networks that foster better communication, cooperation

and collaboration among themselves.There is a new emergent trend within

higher education to pay more attention on understanding ‘what students do as

they live their lives’ (Henderson, Selwyn & Aston, 2017). Based on study of

Wright, (2015) the university students today become ‘digital residents’, more

comfortable and accustomed with the latest tools and applications, it become

even more important to explore the ways in which these tools are being used

and for what purpose.

The most popular use of learning technology reported by students was

for accessing learning materials and other information, to ‘complete their

assignments and projects’. Undoubtedly, ‘Google’ was the most popular

source for information search. Similarly, some of the students shared their

experiences of using digital libraries, financial databases and other websites

for collecting data for their course projects and for most of them, this was the

first time of accessing such learning resources through the mediation of

technology (Elliot and Shah, 2018).

Another popular use of learning technology among the students was

the regular use of some basic Microsoft software for completing academic

tasks such as preparation of reports, presentations and sometimes

spreadsheets for financial analysis. Henderson et al. (2017) coined such

usage as ‘mundane set of digital practices’ by which students use various

tools for note taking, editing, and drafting assignments.

 However, irrespective of how ‘mundane’ such practices may be, they

continue to be one of the most significant uses of technology for students.

But, it is equally important to also think about the concluding remarks given by

Henderson et al. (2017) that many of the educational benefits of technology

as seen by students today, are mostly concerned with the ‘logistics’ of the

university study rather than with issues directly related to learning. Therefore,

it is the need for completing the prescribed academic work and ‘dutifully

performing well’ (Denovan&Macaskill, 2013 as cited in Henderson et al. 2017)

that drives the enthusiasm of students about the educational potential of

learning technology. Therefore, what needs to be further explored is how such

trends translate and ultimately influence the learning approaches of students

in a relatively less developed and traditional (instructor-led) educational

setting.

. Experiences of using social media platforms and other chatting

applications such as ‘WhatsApp’, ‘Viber’, ‘iMessage’ and ‘Skype’ were

common. Students were actively using the ‘group-chat’ features in these

applications and were discovering ways in which these tools can assist them

during their project work. These groups are mostly used for sharing

information about academic activities and sending files and other materials (in

a variety of formats) to each other (Elliot and Shah, 2018).

Due to the popularity of such applications, students were already using

them for non-academic purposes, but they described how gradually they have

started to use them for educational purposes as well. The development of a

'new learning style' supported by mobile phones and other wireless network

applications. Students are developing the habit of using such latest

applications to discuss topics, download and share various type of media

resources such as text, pictures and videos and more importantly

communicate with other learners, answer questions, evaluate and improve

each other’s work (Zhang and Li 2017).

Value in the use of ICT

Tinio (2015) enumerated the barriers why ICT utilization in the

teaching-learning process is very limited or not fully maximized. The study

revealed that: Lack of enough computers is the single biggest obstacle

according to the respondents. All other issues have mean rankings

considerably lower than this. Lack of enough technical support for operating

and maintaining ICT resources and the lack of teacher training opportunities

are considered barriers to change as well. So too are the lack of space for

computers and the general lack of funds for operations, including

maintenance of equipment, purchase of supplies, and electricity.”

Kolding (2017) also stressed that, the penetration of PCs in the home

due to rapidly falling prices has made the device a commodity and people that

do not possess even the most basic skills increasingly a rarity. Added to this

have been the strong penetration of mobile phones and the expanded

functionalities of these beyond simply making and receiving voice calls, such

as text messaging, browsing the Internet and taking photos. These devices

are being absorbed into our everyday lives and with it have come the skills to

operate them.

De Coning (2017) mentioned in his paper "Embarking on ICT-enabled

Learning: Lessons Learnt", that embarking on ICT-mediated education is an

inherently risky affair. It can be doomed if it is perceived and implemented as

traditional residential education which is technologically mediated. Institutions

must guard against becoming so enthralled by technology that sight is lost

that technology must be easily accessible and affordable to the various target

audiences.

Simkins (2016) mentioned that to ensure that solutions proposed to

countries were technology-neutral and to make the best use of limited

resources, most actions related to the implementation of projects and the

organization ofevents involved the use of in-house expertise. In order to put in

place sustainable ICT solutions aimed at delivering value-added services, the

needs of the population must be well assessed and the necessary alliances

and partnerships established with the relevant stakeholders. Partnerships and

alliances of all types have been essential in the implementation strategy.

On the other hand, the degree of utilization of computers of 1 st year

Education student as indicated by Pizarras (2017) was taken into

consideration in the choice or selection of indicators used in the study. The

indicators are instructional use, hardware use, software use.

Degree of utilization of computers

Students today need to have computer knowledge and skills to enable

them perform their task at school and their jobs. This presents a challenge to

universities on how to provide computer education to their students. This

challenge is even more critical for students in developing countries. Few

studies have been done on attitude of students’ use of computers in a

university environment using a well-grounded technology acceptance mode. It

adds to the empirical evidence of the factors influencing the use of computers

in academic institutions in emerging countries and it reveals that computer

use is not only dependent on student positive attitude, ability, and willingness

to learn and use computers, but also on instructor preparedness and

computer accessibility. These findings offer valuable insights and framework

on producing students that are well skilled in computer use (Ejiaku, 2015).

Institutions should make ICT a core course for pre-service teachers so

as to produce more ICT competent teachers. Issuance of certificate on ICT

competence should be taken as a priority. This will serve as a back-up for the

degree certificate of pre-service teachers (Amosa, 2015).

Furthermore, Ghavifekr (2015) identifies the effectiveness of the extent

of ICT tools in supporting classroom teaching and learning. It indicates that

average level of the perceptions in implementing ICT tools in teaching and

learning in the classroom among school teachers, high level of challenges of

using ICT tools in teaching and learning in the classroom among school

teachers and recognizing the effectiveness of the extent of ICT tools in

supporting teaching and learning in the classroom.

The more recent PISA data study of (OECD, 2015) also found a

positive relationship between the use of computers and better results in

literacy where it is evident that digital technology is being used by learners to

increase study time and practice. Regarding achievements of the introduction

of ICT into the school’s curriculum, that increasing number of students have

computer awareness, teaching and learning has become easier with the use

of computer, students with high IQ can now find something to engage them
meaningfully, and there is keen and healthy competition among schools of

ICT knowledge sharing.

The knowledge of using a computer is a significant concept and it is

necessary to all students to be computer literates. Even though many

individuals identified themselves as computer literates, it was understood that

this literacy level stayed at basic knowledge-skill level (Dincer,2016).

According to Lee (2015), the impact of knowing how to use computer

multimedia such as audio and video are crucial in learning. For this reason,

lessons presented with audio and video improves learning outcomes

especially for the verbal information in the audio lesson. Teaching and

learning materials such as audio and video have been largely acknowledged

as some of the most significant components in language teaching to ensure a

successful language learning.

The presence of educational technology is growing in the classroom.

The new generation of kids come ready to work with these new technologies,

which play an important role in children’s learning and acquiring various

cognitive knowledge so that educational technology must be incorporated into

future curriculum. The application of educational technology enhances skills

and cognitive characteristics. With the help of new technology comes an ex-

plosion of learning and receiving new information, especially on mobile

devices (Dewi,2016).

The application of educational technology enhances skills and

cognitive characteristics. With the help of new technology comes an explosion

of learning and receiving new information, especially on computer devices

and states problem may occur if the teachers have the ability to use

educational technology and whether the school is sufficiently equipped with all

modern technical means (Stosic, 2015).

A study on ICT skill evaluation of students in University of Belgium by

Verhoeven (2016) the self-perceived proficiency in ICT skills is higher for

students who see computers as useful and necessary for research. Its

promoting the usefulness of computers and the need of ICT for science could

enhance science students’ proficiency in ICT skills. Having the feeling of

having control over a computer has the strongest impact on reported

proficiency in ICT skills. The use of ICT in educational settings, by itself acts

as a catalyst for change in this domain. Students using ICTs for learning

purposes become immersed in the process of learning and as more and more

students use computers as information sources and cognitive tools.

The influence of computer literacy in education promotes students’

performance in web-based courses, online searching and effective use of

library databases which are essential to students’ academic performance.

Therefore, university libraries should endeavor to provide students with

adequate computer system in the university libraries and also provide

computer literacy skill that will enable them function effectively in the use of

computer system and its services. University management should include

computer literacy as a course in their curriculum and make it compulsory for

every student entering the university so that they will be equipped with

computer literacy skills (Chima, 2015).

 Obviously, computer literacy comprises a complex array of skills to

master. Therefore, teachers can play an important role in helping learners to

acquire the necessary skills by integrating them into their regular classroom

practice. They can help students to professionally use computers for language

learning both in classroom and beyond (Kaoneemah, 2018).

Hardware and Software use

Hardware is a physical device that has its own resources: CPU, RAM,

disk space. Similar to the router, having its own operating system

(Markowski, 2018). Software is a set of instructions, data or programs used to

operate computers and execute specific tasks. Opposite of hardware, which

describes the physical aspects of a computer, software is a generic term used

to refer to applications, scripts and programs that run on a device. Software

can be thought of as the variable part of a computer and hardware the

invariable part (Rouse, 2018).

Shapiro (2018) indicates that hardware is the physical component of a

computer or a communications system. It includes both mechanical and

electronic parts: the processor, memory, keyboard, screen, mouse and

printer. Lane (2017) mentioned that new reports were routinely released

saying that teachers need to receive massive instruction in technology use.

Recently, the US Department of Education awarded millions to train 400,000

new teachers in classroom technology use. Reports and evaluations have

consistently shown that classroom technology is not used if the teacher has

not had minimal training. This goes for chalk, posters, and overhead

projectors, which were once "technology."

 As acknowledged by Ofsted's (2016) inspection findings in the area of

information technology: "By itself, a favorable pupil-to-microcomputer ratio

does not necessarily assure consistently high-quality work with IT...". This

may be partly due to a piecemeal approach, which has not encouraged

coherent policies or planning to take place. However, it is also evident that

much of the problem of lack of meaningful integration may be the result of

lack of awareness or lack of confidence on the part of teachers.

Computers are manufactured in many sizes and platforms. Mainframe

and supercomputers are used in organizations with high volumes of data and

complex processing requirements. Personal computers use microprocessors

to bring computing power to the desktop of both multimedia developers and

end users. Personal computers are defined by their platform, the combination

of hardware and operating system they use. Multimedia developers must

consider the development platform that meets their project requirements, as

well as the delivery platform, the computer system available to potential users.

All computer hardware systems share the basic functions of input, processing,

storage, output, and transmission of data. The system unit, consisting of the

CPU, primary memory, expansion ports, and the circuitry that connects them,

provides the foundation for processing digital instructions and data. (Casey,

2015).

Users of ICT – as we all are today – often have to adjust to a new

device or software or to new functions of their existing devices and

applications. As a result, ICT users must learn, and unlearn, at a rapid pace.

Only those who can direct this process of learning themselves, solving

unfamiliar problems as they arise, will fully reap the benefits of a technology-
rich world. Given that students’ use of ICT for learning partly depends on the

extent to which they have access to a computer, one key indication of access

to ICT resources is the number of students per school computer (OECD,

2016).

Another major trend in contemporary ICT education is based on the

concept that students are actively involved in the construction of ICT

knowledge. Constructivist theory in ICT learning suggests that learners

personally negotiate meaning by creating different mental representations of

ICT knowledge. In Australia, the ICT curriculum developers have essentially

adopted some constructivist views of ICT in education that recognizes its

capacity to handle various aspects of reality as learners construct their own

knowledge. The Australian documents emphasize the practical value of ICT in

social science, medicine, economics, commerce, engineering, and art. Apart

from the information technology aspect, there is clear emphasis on ICT as a

means of communication. It is a fair interpretation of the rationale here to say

that the Australian ICT curriculum is based on a philosophy of pragmatism

and constructivism (Stoilescu, 2016).

With the findings and discussions located and identified by the

researchers regarding with twith the competence in the use of ICT and the

degree of utilization of computers, the necessity for conducting this study is

paramount important. Finding out if this is manifested by the 1st year BSEd

students, is truly a venture the researchers are interested in. Hence the

researchers would examine further to find out if there is is a significant

relationship between the competence in the use of ICT between the degree of

utilization of computers by 1st year BSEd students.