Nigerian Preservice Science Technology and Mathematics Teachers’ Computer self-efficacy: An Exploration based on Gender, Age, and Discipline of Study

The global acceptance of information and communication technologies in education is not without barriers and
one major barrier on the part of teacher educator implementation effort is preservice teachers’ perception of and
capabilities for applying computer technology. Although the construct of computer self-efficacy has gained
widespread investigation in the developed world, few researches have been conducted on this construct in
Nigeria. The purpose of this study was to investigate preservice teachers’ level of computer self-efficacy and to
determine the invariability of this construct with respect to the demographic variables of gender, age, and
discipline of study. Using the slightly modified computer self-efficacy scale (Durndell, Haag & Laithwaite,
2000) in a cross-sectional survey involving a sample of preservice teachers at two universities (N=480), we
found that preservice teachers reported high level of computer self-efficacy. Exploratory factor analysis of the
survey data supported the multidimensional nature of the computer self-efficacy construct. A 2×3×2 multivariate
analysis of variance showed that the construct of computer self-efficacy appeared invariant with respect to the
demographic variables of discipline of study and age classification while gender remained a determining factor
in preservice teachers’ aggregate computer self-efficacy even at the subscale levels of beginning and advanced
skills.