Computers on wheels: an alternative to 'each one has one'

Four fifth‐grade classrooms embarked on a modified ubiquitous computing initiative in the fall of 2003. Two 15‐computer wireless laptop carts were shared among the four classrooms in an effort to integrate technology across the curriculum and affect change in student learning and teacher pedagogy. This initiative—in contrast to other one‐to‐one programmemess and stationary labs—offers public schools alternatives to budget constraints and instructional‐space overhead. Results indicate positive teacher technology competence and confidence, as well as instructional strategies that were student‐centred made meaningful uses of technology. Teacher technological knowledge and efficacy, pedagogical knowledge, and a supportive school community seem to be strong indicators for impacting technology integration in this context.     

Everyday Laptop Use by Children in a Southern Country: A Mixed-Method Approach

Information and communication technology (ICT) use among children in low-income countries remains understudied. The purpose of this study is to describe laptop usage among children in the context of the One Laptop per Child (OLPC) project 4 years after the laptops were first introduced in a community in Madagascar. The study was conducted using a mixed-method approach combining analysis of ICT use history, empirical observations, and interviews with children and parents. In class, activities involving laptops—including educational games, information research, and the creation of texts and storyboards—were found to be aligned with existing classroom activities. Outside school, computers were found to be used in individual, group, or family settings to listen to music and watch videos, play games, share content, and do homework. The study also found that computers play a major role in everyday routines, opening up new possibilities in photography and video-making. The findings also indicate that computer usage encourages children to learn new literacies in which image plays a central role and new forms of self-expression if they are accompanied and supported by their family.     

Teacher Professional Development Through a Collaborative Curriculum Project – an Example of TPACK in Maine

Maine’s one-to-one laptop program provides an ideal opportunity to explore conditions that optimize teacher integration of technology-focused curriculum into the classroom. EcoScienceWorks (ESW) is an ecology curriculum that includes targeted simulations and a code block programming challenge developed through an NSF-ITEST grant. The project was designed as a collaboration that included simulation software developers; middle school science teachers; the Maine laptop program; environmental educators; an external evaluator; and a lead organization experienced in teacher guided curriculum development. Thus, each of the elements of TPACK (technology, pedagogy, and content knowledge) worked together to produce the final ecology simulation-centered curriculum. In 2008–2009, the ESW curriculum became available statewide through the Maine laptop program. Partner teachers have transitioned their classrooms to more learning-centered environments through the use of technology and have become teacher leaders. The collaborative approach to technology focused curriculum development used in this project is a model for TPACK professional development.     

Teachers with laptops: The first tentative steps

The ‘Laptop for Teachers’ program was introduced by the Victorian Department of Education to provide every teacher in the state system with a laptop computer. It forms part of a larger strategy to expand the use of information technology and multimedia in Victorian schools. At the heart of this program is a belief that computing technology will not only bring about a dramatic change in the way students interact with teachers, but will give new meaning to ‘knowledge’ and provide a different approach to the way knowledge is generated and transmitted. At the same time, little indication was given to teachers as to how this might be realised with the laptop computer. This paper reports on the initial attempts of a group of teachers in a Victorian government secondary school to explore the possibilities for computers in their work. The author carried out this research as one of the twenty-nine teachers at the school who received a laptop computer in the first-round allocation in 1998.     

Laptop initiative: Impact on instructional technology integration and student learning

The purpose of this study was to examine how 1:1 laptop initiative affected student learning at a selected rural Midwestern high school. A total of 105 high school students enrolled in 10th–12th grades during the 2008–2009 school year participated in the study. A survey instrument created by the Mitchell Institute was modified and used to collect data on student perceptions and faculty perceptions of the impact of 1:1 laptop computing on student learning and instructional integration of technology in education. Study findings suggest that integration of 1:1 laptop computing positively impacts student academic engagement and student learning. Therefore, there is need for teachers to implement appropriate computing practices to enhance student learning. Additionally, teachers need to collaborate with their students to learn and understand various instructional technology applications beyond basic Internet browsing and word processing.     

Why we all want it to work: towards a culturally based model for technology and educational change

This paper explores reasons why the use of technology in education may be so attractive to so many people. Two emerging perspectives—memetics, and the social history of technology—are explored, and a typology of technology‐as‐cultural‐tool is presented. Finally, implications of these ideas for educational change are considered.     

Learning from the Learners: Preparing Future Teachers to Leverage the Benefits of Laptop Computers

Technology is changing the teaching and learning landscape. Teacher preparation programs must produce teachers who have new skills and strategies to leverage the benefits of laptop computers in their classrooms. This study used a phenomenological strategy to explain first-year college students' perceptions of the effects of a 1:1 laptop experience on their readiness for college and the uses of technology for instructional purposes by high school teachers. Participants in the study had experienced a 1:1 laptop initiative for two or more years while in high school. The study included interviews with 15 participants from two different countries and five different high schools. Recommendations from student voices in this study call for teacher preparedness beyond the levels of traditional teacher preparation curriculum. Teacher preparation programs and ongoing professional development need to embed curriculum with practical applications of technology integration for teachers so that they are truly classroom ready to leverage the computers that students come to class expecting to use.     

Exploring situational factors shaping access in a laptop program for socially disadvantaged children in India: a case study

Low-cost laptop programs attempt to address gaps in access to computers in developing countries. However, the translation of computing access from intention to actuality is mediated by many situational factors. This research presents a case study of how access to a set of laptops donated to a school for socially disadvantaged children in India was shaped by social, logistical, economic and value considerations. Findings illustrate how principles of equity driving the program clashed with limited resources to produce conditions that constrained student agency. Additionally, external dependencies for laptops, knowledge and support restricted the school’s ability to provide computing access, and set up uncomfortable internal inequalities within the school. Access increased for just one class of students, and even they only used the laptops for limited time periods, in pairs, and under direct supervision. Seven important access considerations related to equity, resources and agency are identified to support strategic planning of future laptop programs.     

When each one has one: The influences on teaching strategies and student achievement of using laptops in the classroom

In this study, we examined the educational effects of providing fifth-, sixth-, and seventh-grade students with 24-hour access to laptop computers. Specifically we examined the impact of laptops on classroom activities, and on student use of technology and their writing and problem-solving skills. Participating teachers received computer integration training using the iNtegrating Technology for inQuiry (NTeQ) model to develop problem-based lessons that engage students in critically examining authentic issues, and strengthen research and writing skills. A matched treatment-control group design was employed, in which classes taught at the same grade levels in five participating schools served as the laptop (1 computer per student) and control (5+ computers per class) contexts. Participants included students, teachers, and parents from the two groups. Although systematic observations revealed relatively few differences in teaching methods between laptop and control classrooms, laptop students used computers more frequently, extensively, and independently. Writing assessment results showed substantial and significant advantages for laptop over control students, with six of eight effect sizes exceeding +0.80. Results also showed significant advantages for the laptop group on five of the seven components of the problem-solving task.     

一对一数字化学习研究的领域与趋势

在对MLTI项目、HSLI项目、FSD1:1项目、OLPC项目、CFF项目、TIP项目、"跨越式"项目、"手持式"项目、电子书包项目、TOTL项目、FTL项目等典型一对一数字化学习项目的介绍与梳理的基础上,文章归纳了当前八个主要的一对一数字化学习研究领域,包括:一对一数字化学习环境部署、整合技术的创新教学模式、基于生态视角的学校变革、面向过程的教师专业发展、一对一项目效益评估、学生21世纪技能提升、一对一网络班级文化管理、跨区域教育公平。整合技术的创新教学与效果评估将依然是未来一对一数字化学习研究的重点,研究将呈现个案化、微观化和过程化的发展趋势,并且教学创新问题、班级管理问题、学校变革问题、教师培训问题、效果评估问题等将全面纳入研究的视域当中。     

Teachers’ Critical Evaluations of Dynamic Geometry Software Implementation in 1:1 Classrooms

Although the use of dynamic software in high school mathematics in the United States has emerged as a research topic, little research has been conducted on how teachers integrate new software in relation to at-home technology networks. Interviews with eight mathematics teachers from four North Carolina counties participating in 1:1 laptop initiatives are analyzed to trace similar decision-making themes, including Internet access, laptop availability, software use, and teacher training. This article outlines how current technologies in classrooms were critically examined by the teachers and how network connectivity impressions affected hardware and software use.     

教育技术学学科体系研究

当前教育技术学领域的理论研究面临很多障碍,也存在许多迷茫,这很大程度上源于对教育技术学学科性质和理论体系认识不清晰。该文尝试提出一种教育技术学学科体系的基本框架。建构这种学科体系的基本出发点是基于下面的假设:教育技术理论发展的逻辑起点是教育技术学的学科功能——解决教育、教学问题。     

多媒体在美术鉴赏课中的整合运用

随着现代教育技术的不断发展和完善,多种电子媒体被越来越多地应用于教育领域。就高中新课程“美术鉴赏”课而言,尤其得益于现代教育手段的支持。现存美术精品众多,传统的图片式欣赏已远不能满足教学之需。借用于现代电子技术,整合美术鉴赏课堂教学,并不是一个全新的尝试。但系统地阐释多媒体在美术鉴赏课上的应用,在技术层面外做些学科上的...     

Everyday personal laptop usage in secondary schools in Trinidad and Tobago

The e-Connect And Learn (eCAL) programme is a Trinidad and Tobago government-led initiative, launched in 2010, that grants personal laptop computers to students entering secondary school. The purpose of this paper is to provide a snapshot of how students are using these government-issued personal laptops 3 years after the programme’s launch. This paper explores the fissure between what the policy recommends and what is actually enacted in the context of laptop usage in the classroom. Data were drawn from 1,451 students, from 32 secondary schools across Trinidad and Tobago. Responses indicate that students are falling short of the expectations for in-class laptop usage and in schools where usage is less often but on a regular basis, laptops are mainly used for technology-related subjects. These findings not only suggest that students’ everyday personal laptop usage in the classroom is not in alignment with the eCAL programme goals, but also highlight some of the issues to be considered by other countries when implementing large-scale laptop programmes.     

One-to-one laptops in K-12 classrooms: voices of students

In planning educational technology initiatives, the concerns of many stakeholders are typically taken into account, including the concerns of administrators, teachers, parents, and employers. The perspective of students are recognized as valuable, but not often queried or considered. This paper explores the opinions of K-12 students about a one-to-one laptop programme implementation through content analysis of 362 blog postings made by these students expressing their thoughts on the topic at three time points in two years. Employing a bottom-up coding strategy, this paper identified seven themes that represented students’ opinion of technology use in schools: more efficient and productive learning, tools for better writing, access to information, engagement with new media, remaining relevant in a technological world, share and learn from peers, and individualized and differentiated instruction. This study suggested that, when new technology tools are used in schools, students should not only be viewed as learners but also be considered as real writers with valuable opinions. Students also should be provided the opportunity to write for an authentic purpose and audience using diverse forms of digital media.     

The high-tech,post-Fordist school

In many parts of the world, including Victoria, Australia, public schools are undergoing changes to the way they are administered, funded, and staffed and are being asked to accept a different mission and a different set of responsibilities. This paper points out that these structural changes to public school systems are explained and legitimized by their proponents through reference to post-Fordist arrangements of labour, capital, and technology, not through reference to educational discourses per se. At the same time computer-based technologies are being asked to play an increasingly prominent role in education, and it is argued that this computing-in-education project is a key strategy in moving aspects of post-Fordist reform from the administrative wing, down the corridor and through the classroom door. Finally, it is argued that both structural and technological change in school systems contribute to and are nurtured by the prevailing culture, best understood as the postmodern condition.This paper generalizes arguments arising from a case study of laptop computer use in schools (Arnold & Gilding, 1994).     

User-design: A case application in health care training

User-design is an important new theoretical process for the creation of training, software, and computer systems in many contexts. However, the implementation of user-design has not been sufficiently explored. This case study details the implementation of user-design methodology in home healthcare through the context of diffusing a new laptop patient record-keeping system with home nurses. In many ways the theoretical advantages and disadvantages of user-design are borne out in this exploration. The case study examines inefficiencies in the process, frustrations over responsible participation and design, and the increased ownership built during the design phase which paid off in the long run during implementation of the new system.     

Ready or Not: Preparation Through Simulation

Immediately after 9/11, Burlington County College (BCC) realized that the focus of emergency preparedness must change. BCC responded by identifying community needs, developing customized simulation training using high-fidelity human patient simulators and laptop/desktop technology; developing partnerships, and securing outside funding. Over 8,500 individuals, at all levels, have received training.     

Educational Broadcasting and the New Technologies

Those of us who work in education and in broadcasting have been dominated, for many years now, with thought, discussion and innumerable papers — almost to the point of tedium — with what we call ‘new technology’. What we mean by new technology are those aspects of the enormous space race-induced changes in the last quarter of the twentieth century which directly affect the making and using of audio-visual materials.