Attitudes and Capabilities of Teachers Towards Educational Innovation. The Views of Students

Abstract

This research sought to determine the attitudes and capabilities of teachers towards educational innovation from the perspective of 828 students from 19 educational establishments in the Biobío region of Chile. In order to answer the research questions, we conducted comparative analyses of mean differences using ANOVA, the t-test, and correlations using Pearson’s coefficient. The main results show that teachers are generally highly rated by students in terms of the characteristics of an innovative teacher, particularly regarding respect (84.7%), disposition (86.9%), commitment (82%), and vocation (81.1%). However, they are less well rated on the use of technological tools such as email and social networks to support the teaching-learning process. In addition, women appear to have a higher opinion of some characteristics of teachers linked to interpersonal relationships. Finally, the correlations revealed a positive and significant relationship for the variables examined with respect to the students’ gender.