Support for Overcoming Pedagogical Issues in Primary School Tablet-Based Classroom Environments

The objective of this study is to provide support for teachers to overcome the pedagogical issues that are evident in tablet teaching at primary schools in Thailand. The “Apps4Youth” web-based system is introduced as a practical tool to support teachers in the evaluation tablet-based educational applications. In the first part, the motivation for an evaluation tool is provided based on observations from two schools regularly using tablets in the classroom. The findings highlight pedagogical issues which lead to teachers’ lack of confidence in adopting tablets at class, particularly in discovering applications, evaluating their applicability, and integrating with classroom activities. The second part of the study introduces a system that enables primary school teachers to evaluate their own classroom activities, share their experiences with other teachers, and search for classroom activities that could be applicable in their own context. The results of a survey, collected from 25 teachers, showed that teachers have positive and negative perceptions of the system and how it may improve support for teachers in the use of tablets in the classroom.