Global Trends in Information and Communication Technology Integration Research

Abstract

The integration of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) into various spheres of human endeavour has aided its penetration in the 21" century. This has created easier operations and tools necessary for quality production and distribution of knowledge. This study, therefore, ascertained the volume of ICT integrated studies across continents, the most prominent method adopted in carrying it out, and the major theories, models and themes adopted in ICT integrated studies. The study adopted content analysis method, and embarked on a meta-analysis of one hundred and twenty studies across the globe selected through literary search in order to determine the trends in ICT integration research. Thus, five coding categories were developed comprising the year of publication, methods of study, theories used, findings and themes. Findings indicated that during the years of focus (2000 and 2017), 44.16% of the research publications were published from 2006 to 2010, and 30% was carried out in Asia, followed by North America (18.33%) and Europe (15.83%), while Australia /Oceania and Africa had the least during the years in focus. However, most of the studies (43.33%) used the triangulation method to investigate the integration of ICT into education, while quantitative and qualitative method usage was 23.33% and 19.16% respectively. Moreover; 43.33% of the entire studies selected applied no theory to explain the integration of ICT in education, and 56.66% of the entire studies selected were negative and
unfavourable to ICT integration. Most themes in the selected studies (67.5%) were related to the users. Consequently, as users and teachers are the core themes in ICT integration studies, scholarly investigation and intervention on the subject should pay adequate attention to both. UNESCO and governments in Africa and Antactica should encourage the integration of ICT in education by
formulating and implementing positive initiatives to support the goal.