The Appeals, Dilemmas, and Pathways of Enabling Rural Teachers’ Professional Development Through Emerging Technologies

Abstract

With the rapid advancements in technology, especially in digitalization and intelligence, numerous modern technologies have poured into rural schools, effectively improving their informatization conditions. Nevertheless, these technologies remain detached from rural teachers, failing to significantly enhance the quality of education and teaching in rural areas. Rural education is a crucial aspect of ensuring balanced development in education. The question of how to enhance rural teachers’ technological application abilities and fully leverage the positive role of technology in rural education and teaching has become a significant topic of current research on rural education issues. To better address this question, this study conducted a thorough examination of the specific appeals of rural teachers in the process of technology enablement. It was discovered that rural teachers generally face dilemmas such as insufficient technological application abilities, difficulties in obtaining quality teaching resources, and the lack of continuous technical support and update mechanisms. Based on these findings, specific pathways such as strengthening rural teacher training, optimizing the allocation of educational resources, and establishing mechanisms for continuous technical support and updates are proposed to aid in the high-quality development of rural education.