TRACK as a Transformative Model for Preparing 21st Century Teachers: Relevance and Implications for the Ethiopian Landscape
Keywords:
Digital Age Classrooms, Lifelong Learning, Sustainable Development Goal 4, Teacher Education, TPACK, 21 -Century TeachersAbstract
This review and reflection explores the Technological Pedagogical Content Knowledge (TPACK) framework as a transformative model for preparing 21st -century teachers, with a specific focus on its relevance and implications
for the Ethiopian education system. As digital technologies redefine pedagogical landscapes globally, there is an urgent need for teacher education systems—especially in developing contexts like Ethiopia—to adopt integrated approaches that foster technological fluency alongside sound pedagogical and content knowledge. The TPACK framework, which emphasizes the interplay between technology, pedagogy, and subject content, offers a compre- hensive paradigm for teacher preparation in digital age classrooms. This paper critically reviews the theoretical underpinnings of TPACK, international and African implementation experiences, and the critical gaps in Ethio- pia’s teacher training institutions. It further discusses implementation challenges, presents practical strategies for TPACK integration, and outlines implications for curriculum developers, policymakers, and teacher educators. The review concludes with a roadmap for embedding TPACK in Ethiopian teacher education institutions, supporting lifelong learning and technology-enabled instruction aligned with Sustainable Development Goal 4.
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