Technology and knowledge. In what way are knowledge and teachers’ knowledge practices in subject areas crucial for the integration of technology in education?

• Published in: Nordic journal of digital literacy Vol. 17; no. 3; pp. 155 - 169
• Main Authors: Bratland, Erik, Ghami, Mohamed El, Mediå, Morten
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 11.10.2022
• Subjects: Legitimation Code Theory; secondary schooling; specialization knowledge practices; subject areas; Technology integration
• ISSN: 0809-6724; 1891-943X
• DOI: 10.18261/njdl.17.3.2

In recent decades, education has undergone a digital transformation. In Norway, the government’s digitalization strategy for education includes ambitious goals and plans, with expectations of new forms of teaching and learning, better learning, and improved learning outcomes. Despite the increased availability of technology in Norwegian schools, there is still a significant gap between available technology in the classroom and teachers’ use of this technology for educational purposes. This paper is based on Legitimation Code Theory (LCT) and explores teachers’ understanding of subject-area knowledge practices. Drawing on an empirical survey of a number of schools in northern Norway, completed in 2018/19, this paper uses one dimension of LCT to explore and compare the organized principles underlying teachers’ knowledge practices in the key subjects of mathematics and Norwegian. An analysis suggests a code ʻclash’ with mathematics and a code ʻmatch’ with Norwegian, which may help explain their different patterns of technology integration. This research provides new perspectives on the integration of technology in education and suggests that different forms of subject-area knowledge have varying effects on teachers’ knowledge practices with the use of technology in schools. This insight, which reveals the importance of knowledge and knowledge practices, will have an impact on strategies for integrating technology in schools and on measures that can promote better learning in subjects using technology in education.