Abstract
Learners must increasingly be equipped with skills pertinent to the 21st century to be able to compete globally. Coupled with the prevailing condition of unequal access to technological resources across schools, this study examined teachers' experiences and responses in diverse South African educational environments regarding integrating digital technology into teaching practices. A qualitative framework was adopted through semi-structured interviews, and document analysis were used as principal data collection instruments. The six teachers were purposively sampled from three public schools in the Gauteng province, located in distinct quintile positions. Thematic analysis through ATLAS.ti software was utilized to integrate and make sense of the data collected. The process revealed themes about access, teachers' attitudes, institutional support, and teachers' realities both in highly resourced and less resourced contexts. The findings of this study verify that teachers are aware of the future potential of digital technology and later generative AI (GenAI) instruments to facilitate teaching practice and alleviate administrative labor, although usage differs substantially and is context-dependent, all sites of education, identified human interaction's as irreplaceable in facilitating learner engagement, and concluded that effective integration of digital tools in South African classrooms requires more than just access to infrastructure; it necessitates professional development, policy congruence, and context-aware strategies that prioritize teacher agency. These results contribute to debates about educational technology integration by illustrating how unequal access, institutional culture, and teacher perceptions create realities about digital learning.