Implementation Status of the Master Plan for ICT in Education for Secondary Teachers’ Professional Development

Abstract

The Master Plan for ICT in Education is one of the key policy documents of the Government of Bangladesh (GoB) for integrating ICT into education in Bangladesh. The objective of this study was to analyse the status of teacher development in Bangladesh in comparison with the Master Plan for ICT in Education. A qualitative research approach was followed throughout the study. Forty respondents from three categories—planning and development, implementation, and beneficiaries—were consulted during data collection through interviews and focus group discussions (FGDs), following a purposive sampling technique. Both the interview and FGD guidelines focused on the planned activities regarding teacher development mentioned in the Master Plan for ICT in Education and were grouped into eight different themes.
It was found that ICT has been integrated into the teacher training curriculum mostly as a facilitation tool. However, the lack of Technological Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) and the skills of both trainers and teachers is one of the key challenges to effective implementation. On the other hand, more than 1,000 master trainers have been developed, though this number seems insufficient to train all secondary teachers within the planned time. Moreover, several online courses have been introduced, although the lack of links between the courses, their benefits, and recognition were identified as key challenges. Since laptop purchase facilities on a monthly instalment basis have been introduced for teachers, most of them are unaware of these facilities.
Based on the findings, training on TPACK needs to be introduced for trainers and teachers. Online courses should be developed through proper needs analysis. Furthermore, online courses for teachers should be developed in partnership with academic institutions and training providers. The benefits of online courses should be communicated to teachers to motivate them to participate. Finally, campaigns, promotional activities, and official notices could be arranged to make teachers aware of online courses, their benefits, and available loan facilities.