A comparative analysis of readiness for digital technology-driven instructional practice of grade-8 science teachers in Morocco, South Africa & Ivory Cost

Factors influencing educational outcomes go beyond teachers' ability to engage students effectively. Recently, innovative and discovery-oriented digital teaching technologies have been widely adopted in many developed countries to help explain complex scientific concepts, providing an advantage for better student performance in international assessments like Trend in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS). In contrast, the limited availability of these technologies in African schools has prompted an investigation into the readiness of African nations for digital technology-driven science instruction, aiming to raise awareness among education stakeholders. This study utilized data from the 2023 TIMSS, analyzing responses from 897 teachers across South Africa, Morocco, and Côte d'Ivoire, selected from a global pool of 25,078 participants after excluding incomplete cases. The data were analyzed using means, standard deviations, and Analysis of Variance (ANOVA). The findings revealed no significant difference in the availability of digital educational technology (DET) for science instruction among the sampled countries F(2,894)=2.668,p=0.07>0.05. However, significant differences were observed in access to DET F(2,894)=4.536,p=0.011<0.05, and in the level of professional development F(2,894)=7.718,p=0.00<0.05. These results suggest that education stakeholders in the African countries studied share a similar attitude toward acquiring educational technologies. Therefore, it is recommended that the sampled countries utilize insights from the 2023 TIMSS results and invest in strong infrastructure for digital technology to improve student achievements in school science and in future TIMSS assessments.