Article Gold Open Access 2025

Examining Technology Integration in Upper Secondary Schools: A Comparative Analysis Across School Programs and Subjects

Technology, Knowledge and Learning
Journal
Abstract

This study contributes to the comprehensive understanding of technology integration quality within Swiss upper secondary schools by comparing different technology-enhanced learning activities across school programs and subject areas. We investigated differences between vocational and general programs, as well as between humanities and scientific subjects, regarding four different types of learning activities (as defined by the interactive constructive active passive framework) enhanced by technology. Results based on a survey of 1725 teachers revealed that teachers in vocational programs reported a higher frequency of technology-enhanced learning activity implementation in comparison to teachers in general education programs. Employing multilevel analyses, we found that less sophisticated learning activities (i.e., passive and active) were more prevalent in scientific subjects than in humanities, whereas constructive and interactive activities were more frequently proposed by teachers teaching humanities. This subject-related difference was significantly more pronounced among teachers in general education programs. Our study highlights the importance of considering the quality of technology integration, revealing differences across passive, active, constructive, and interactive technology-enhanced learning activities. The findings are interpreted with consideration for the specificities of school curricula and subject content. This study represents an ongoing progression in the exploration of technology integration quality in educational practices and calls for further research in this area. © The Author(s) 2025.

Keywords

Author Keywords

Vocational education Technology integration General education School program Subject area

Index Keywords

Teaching Teachers' Curricula Engineering education Apprentices Vocational education Educational technology Integration Technology Integration Secondary schools School project General education Learning Activity Scientific subject Subject area Technology enhanced learning
Author Affiliations
Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training, Lugano, Switzerland
Institute of Education, Universität Zürich, Zurich, ZH, Switzerland
Swiss Federal Institute for Vocational Education and Training, Lugano, Switzerland, Institute of Education, Universität Zürich, Zurich, ZH, Switzerland
Funding & Acknowledgements
Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, SNF
Grant: 187277
Open access funding provided by Swiss Federal University for Vocational Education and Training (SFUVET). This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (Grant number 187277).
Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, SNF
Open access funding provided by Swiss Federal University for Vocational Education and Training (SFUVET). This work was supported by the Swiss National Science Foundation (Grant number 187277).
References 10 References
1 OECD Education Working Papers, (2011)
2 Antonietti, Chiara, “Development and validation of the ICAP Technology Scale to measure how teachers integrate technology into learning activities”, Computers and Education, 192, (2023)
3 Aprea, Carmela, Designing technology-enhanced learning environments in vocational education and training, The Wiley Handbook of Vocational Education and Training, pp. 373-393, (2019)
4 Backfisch, Iris, Variability of teachers’ technology integration in the classroom: A matter of utility!, Computers and Education, 166, (2021)
5 Barron, Ann E., Large-scale research study on technology in k-12 schools: Technology integration as it relates to the national technology standards, Journal of Research on Technology in Education, 35, 4, pp. 489-507, (2003)
6 Cattaneo, Alberto A.P., Visual technologies to bridge the gap between school and workplace in vocational education, Digital Workplace Learning: Bridging Formal and Informal Learning with Digital Technologies, pp. 251-270, (2018)
7 Cattaneo, Alberto A.P., Digital tools as boundary objects to support connectivity in dual vocational education: Towards a definition of design principles, Developing Connectivity between Education and Work: Principles and Practices, pp. 137-157, (2021)
8 Cattaneo, Alberto A.P., The role of personal and contextual factors when investigating technology integration in general and vocational education, Computers in Human Behavior, 163, (2025)
9 Cheng, Shonn, Examining the multiplicative relationships between teachers’ competence, value and pedagogical beliefs about technology integration, British Journal of Educational Technology, 52, 2, pp. 734-750, (2021)
10 Chi, Michelene T.H., Active-Constructive-Interactive: A Conceptual Framework for Differentiating Learning Activities, Topics in Cognitive Science, 1, 1, pp. 73-105, (2009)
Quick Actions
Full Text via DOI
Citation Metrics
0
Times Cited (Scopus)

References 10
Document Identifiers