Abstract:

From the discussion among ict´s role in education can be concluded that ict itself and technologic training in teachers are not enough to promote an effective innovation in learning and teaching, due to elements such as: the new meaning given by people to digital literacy and ict potential uses (Area, Gros & Marzal, 2008, Buckingham, 2002; Gros, 2008), the ecosystemic differences experienced in different contexts and the ways they produce a non predictable interaction between people and technology (Aprea, 2006; Kerr, 2004, Zhao & Frank, 2003), and the role played by teacher´s pedagogical curricular positions in the decisions of which and how technologies can be used in their professional performance (Barajas, Kikis & Scheueremann, 2003; Cuban, Kikpartrick & Peck, 2001; Duart, Gil, Pujol & Castaño, 2008; Sancho, 2001, 2008).

Questions about the role of preservice teacher training in the configuration of necessary knowledge to learn and incorporate digital tecnology in their profesional development must be answered. Specially, considering the challenge of having better trained teachers that help new generations in achieving the cultural, cognitive, social and instrumental capacities needed in nowaday society. In this sense, research on innovation in education indicates that the contextual, institutional and group factors´ that influence the act of innovation are analyzed and resignified by each person, through an already built filter of beliefs, knowledge and experience (Abrami, Poulsen&Chambers, 2004; Rivas, 2000; Smylie, 1988). This makes necessary to scrutinize the ways people argue their intention to innovate and how it is represented in their actions and elaborations. This implies that ict use should be seen as a human phenomenon that develops in social contexts through concepts and / or practices that are the result of social negotiation by which individuals and groups interact to create a reality mediated story, a language and human achievements.

From the above, this work presents the results of an investigation about the teacher education students´ beliefs about the relationship between ICT and Innovation. Methodologically this study it is based on a phenomenography design that helps analyzing the referential and structural aspects´ of the subject´s experience, in order to characterize the variations within a group of people on a common phenomenon (Äkerlin, 2005, Booth 1997, Marton, 1988, Marton&YanPong, 2005). This phenomenographic study was done with initial elementary teacher students´ at the Pontificia Universidad Católica de Valparaíso (Chile).

These results allow to identify differences between the beliefs built upon personal experiences, showing the opportunities and limits for Innovation when using digital tecnologies in an innovative way in teaching and learning.

Keywords:

Beliefs, Innovation, Pre-service Teachers.