Challenges for Professional Development of Mother Teacher Educators in Information Communication Technologies

Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) have brought new possibilities to the education sector, but at the same time, they have placed more demands on teachers. They now have to learn how to cope with computers in their classrooms, how to compete with students in accessing the vast body of information chiefly via internet and how to use the hardware and software to enhance the teaching/learning process. Therefore the teachers have to spend more time for their Professional Development in order to reach the benefits of ICT to the learners. Ability of teachers in the uses of ICT for education entails sharing of knowledge among teacher educators, intra and Inter-institutional collaboration, and support from principals and administrators. These factors must be in place for the mother teacher educators, accepting their problems and stress they face in order to bring change in the classroom they handle through ICT. Mother teacher educators require ongoing support and opportunities to experiment with new skills and strategies over time. A professional development programme should therefore include more time and special provisions for developing leadership skills, such as decision-making, team building, communicating, and problem solving for mother teachers considering stress factors. Mothers Teachers Professional Development in ICT therefore face number of challenges. This paper discusses various critical components and challenges for professional development of mother teacher educators in ICT.