Student teachers' conceptions of technology: A metaphor analysis

•Student teachers identified 58 distinct metaphors to conceptualize technology.•Emerged five themes: development, facilitation, vital necessity, power, threat.•Gender and major had no significant effect on their conceptions.•They had a narrow view of technology focusing on artifact characteristics.•Curricular implications for pre-service teacher education were discussed.

This research applied metaphor analysis to investigate student teachers' conceptions of technology. The sample included 237 students enrolled in technical pre-service teacher education in Turkey. Participants were given a questionnaire consisting of demographic questions and the prompt “Technology is like … because …” to articulate their conceptualizations of technology. Data were analyzed both qualitatively and quantitatively. Participants produced 58 distinct mental images clustered into five conceptual categories that characterize technology as development, facilitation, vital necessity, power, and threat. Gender and major had no significant effect on their conceptions. Overall, the results suggest that student teachers' conception of technology is restricted and mostly focuses on artifact and technical dimensions. The implications and potential ways for constructing balanced and broader conceptualization of technology were discussed within the context of teacher education curriculum.