INTEGRATING LEARNING TECHNOLOGY INTO THE CLASSROOM: THE IMPORTANCE OF PRE-SERVICE TEACHERS' AND LECTURERS' PERCEPTIONS

Teachers' perceptions and approaches, and consequently, the learning contexts they provide are known to influence students' perceptions. Successful integration of learning technologies leading to enhanced learning outcomes is unlikely unless teachers perceive and use technology as an integrated part of a student-centered approach to teaching. There was a concern in the Islamic University in Uganda Female Campus (IUIU-FC) that most lecturers do not know how to integrate learning technologies in their lectures. This implied that most students are likely to graduate as teachers without learning how to integrate technology into their teaching. Therefore, this study investigated the perception of Bachelor of Arts/Education students and their lecturers about learning technologies. A total of 56 students and 11 lecturers participated in the study. The instrument of data collection was a structured questionnaire. Data was analyzed using content analysis and descriptive statistics. The study found out that only 14 students (25%) and 6 lecturers (54%) had the right perception of the things that constitute learning technologies. The study concluded that both pre-service teachers and their lecturers generally lack the appropriate perceptions necessary for successful integration of learning technology into their teaching. Therefore, training in teaching and learning technologies for the lecturers and students is recommended.