An investigation into the factors influencing ICT adoption and use in the administration of secondary schools in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

This study investigated the factors influencing adoption and use of Information and Communication Technology (ICT) among school heads in the administration of public secondary schools in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania. It investigated how school heads perceive the role of ICT in improving administrative activities and examined the factors that limit its adoption and use for administrative purposes in these schools. A qualitative phenomenological research design was employed to respond to the research question. Data were collected through semi-structured interviews, document reviews, and reflective journals. Purposive sampling was used to select nine school heads who volunteered to participate in the study, based on their experience and valuable insights into ICT adoption in school administration. Thematic analysis was applied to identify, process, and report key categories. The findings indicated that school heads are generally motivated to use ICT for school administration, as it supports financial tasks, communication, processing students' exam results, and record-keeping. However, several challenges hinder the effective use of ICT, including the digital divide, a shortage of ICT resources, technophobia, poor internet connectivity, unreliable power supply, and insufficient funding and technical support. The study implied for regular ICT training for school heads, improvements in ICT infrastructure, better funding, reliable internet services, and greater involvement of stakeholders in addressing these challenges. Additionally, the study calls for further research into the competency and readiness of school heads to manage public funds using ICT and the exploration of ICT adoption at various levels of educational management.