Challenges of employing electronic professional learning communities to improve digital learning performance from the perspective of social studies teachers in the North Al Sharqiyah Education Directorate in the Sultanate of Oman

Abstract

The study aims to identify the challenges of employing electronic professional learning communities in the educational process among social studies teachers in the North Al Sharqiyah Educational Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. The study included (101) male and female teachers who were randomly selected. The study followed the descriptive approach to identify the challenges of employing electronic professional learning communities. The data were statistically analyzed using statistical packages. The results showed that the challenges related to the external environment were evaluated very high (4.73), such as the weakness of the Internet network, the high cost of subscription, and the lack of the network in some remote villages. The challenges related to the teacher were evaluated high (4.13), such as the large number of teaching and administrative burdens assigned to the teacher that hinder the attendance of electronic professional learning communities, the weakness of moral and material motivation from those concerned to create electronic professional learning communities, the difficulty of absorbing the scientific training material in electronic professional learning communities, the weakness of the skills necessary for teachers to use computers and interactive Internet applications, and the challenges related to the administrative aspect were evaluated medium (2.70), such as the difficulty of managing electronic professional learning communities, the difficulty of practical application of what was trained on, and the difficulty of communication ( (Oral and written) in electronic professional learning communities. In light of the results, the study presented a number of recommendations, including addressing telecommunications companies to reduce the cost of internet subscriptions for students, faculty, and related jobs, so that prices are symbolic in the service of education and learning, and to provide it in all educational villages of the governorate, and to reduce the administrative burdens borne by the faculty.