TEACHERS’ ATTITUDE AND COMPETENCE IN THE USE OF ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN SPECIAL NEEDS SCHOOLS

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya

The study examined teachers’ attitude and competence in using assistive technologies in special needs schools. A descriptive survey design was implemented with 100 teachers selected through purposive sampling from Osun State, Nigeria. Six research questions guided the study and four hypotheses were tested at the 0.05 significance level. A researcher-constructed questionnaire, TACUATQ, was administered using a test-retest approach and achieved a reliability coefficient of 0.85. Findings showed positive attitudes but inadequate competence, with no influence from gender or teaching experience. Recommendations included targeted and repeated teacher training for diverse learner needs.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages12

Reading Time30 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

1. Introduction

TEACHERS’ ATTITUDE AND COMPETENCE IN THE USE OF ASSISTIVE TECHNOLOGIES IN SPECIAL NEEDS SCHOOLS Onivehu Adams Ogirima, Ohawuiro Onyiyeche Emilia, Oyeniran Bunmi Juliana Abstract: This study examined teachers’ attitude and competence in the use of assistive technologies in special needs schools. The descriptive survey method was employed for the study among 100 teachers who were drawn using purposive sampling technique from special needs schools in Osun State, Nigeria. Six research questions were generated while four hypotheses were tested at 0.05 level of significance. A researcher-constructed questionnaire tagged “Teachers’Attitude and Competence in the Use of Assistive Technology Questionnaire (TACUATQ)” was used for data collection. The instrument was administered on 20 selected teachers outside the sample location through test-retest method; it yielded a reliability coefficient of 0.85 through Pearson Product Moment Correlation statistics. Data were analysed with percentage, mean and rank order, t-test and ANOVA statistical tools. The findings revealed that teachers have a positive attitude towards the use of assistive technologies. However, teachers were not competent in the use of assistive technologies. Gender and teaching experience did not influence teachers’ attitude and competence in the use of assistive technologies. It was recommended among other things that teachers should be trained and re-trained on the use of assistive technology for students with speech disorders, visual impairments, hearing impairments, physical impairments and emotional and behavioural disorders. Keywords: Teachers, Attitude, Competence, Assistive Technologies 1. Introduction Globally, there is no gainsaying the fact that, education is a fundamental human right for every child. To this end, therefore, there is a consensus among stakeholders in most nations of the world, Nigeria inclusive, that every child must be educated properly irrespective of whether the child is living with disability or not. In this wise, education is broadly classified into regular education and special needs education. Regular education is the type of education given to students who do not have disabilities in the use of the five sensual modalities vis-a-vis other vital functional capabilities that are cardinal to students’ success during the process of schooling and can cope with the normal classroom settings and methods of instruction. On the other hand, special education is meant for students with one form of disability or the other such as visual impairment, hearing impairment, physical and health impairment, mental retardation, emotional disturbance, speech impairment, learning disabilities and a host of others. In other words, it is incontrovertible that all students go through diverse processes that have their own prospects and problems during the course of an academic endeavour. Nevertheless, students with special needs seem to experience more problems than prospects especially in Nigeria where the goals of special education as stipulated in the National Policy on Education (FRN, 2013) are yet to be achieved. For instance, there is no question that students with special needs do not benefit properly from the diverse and indispensable prospects that are embedded in several technological innovationsand devices for a plethora of reasons that are not far-fetched in the Nigerian educational system. Consequent upon this, it has been reported that the availability of assistive technology in special needs schools in South-Western Nigeria, a geo-political zone with the highest concentration of special needs schools in Nigeria is still miniscule compared with the diverse needs and opportunities related to technology integration in special education (Adeleke, Onivehu, Afe & Ohawuiro, 2016) . In broad terms, assistive technology connotes any piece of equipment or product system, whether acquired commercially or off-the-shelf, modified, or customized that

FAQs

What was the focus of the study?

The study investigated teachers’ attitude and competence in the use of assistive technologies in special needs schools.

How were teachers selected and how was data collected?

One hundred teachers were selected using purposive sampling, and data were collected using the researcher-constructed TACUATQ questionnaire with a test-retest reliability check.

What did the findings reveal about teachers’ attitudes and competence?

Teachers had a positive attitude toward assistive technologies, but they were not competent in using them.

Oct 15, 2026

Uploaded by Aditya