Analyzing ICT literacy of German Teachers: Focusing age and gender issues as well as identifying knowledge levels

Abstract

Owing to the increasingly fast development of media and especially the advancement of computer technology in recent decades, the topic of ICT integration in classrooms is being intensively discussed on different levels and media educators argue about the missing link between school education and the use of ICT in schools. In this respect, ICT-related competencies of teachers are supposed to play an important role, but approaches assessing ICT-related competencies – in general as well as in terms of the teacher profession – rarely exist and, thus, extensive data on ICT literacy of teachers is missing. The presented article focuses on identifying ICT knowledge of German teachers and teacher trainees, taken as a central aspect of media and ICT literacy, and in this respect especially addresses age-related and gender issues as well as different levels of ICT knowledge.