Supporting the Digitally Able Beginning Teacher

This article was published Teaching and Teacher Education, Volume 26, Issue 7,
Author(s): Louise Starkey, ' Supporting the Digitally Able Beginning Teacher', Pages 1429-1438, Copyright Elsevier (October 2010)

The current paper reports on research which explored the experiences of six digitally able beginning teachers during their first year in secondary schools.

The author used a complexity theoretical framework to examine the barriers and enablers that influenced the integration of digital technologies into teaching practice.

The findings indicate that context influences the ability of beginning teachers to apply their knowledge and experience of digital technologies to their teaching practice through:
school policies and structures which encourage and allow access to digital technologies, encouraging beginning teachers to develop their sense of agency, and
the support of a mentor with relevant pedagogical content expertise.