Eclectic Technology

Research continues to tell us that providing students with digital devices does not lead to improved learning outcomes. The question that needs to be looked at is what else needs to be done?
This post begins by looking at two neighborhoods in Philadelphia. One neighborhood has "concentrated affluence" and the other has "concentrated poverty."  They each had one item that was similar - a library. Each library  had "been retooled with banks of new computers, the latest software and speedy Internet access."

The researchers were interested in seeing if the introduction of computers would "close the opportunity gap." Unfortunately this is not what happened. Here is one sentence from the post: "They select different programs and features, engage in different types of mental activity, and come away with different kinds of knowledge and experience."

There is much more information found in this post. The way the students use the computers were very different between the two groups as was the interaction of the adults with the children.

This post brings up one question for me. More and more schools are moving to a one-to-one initiative. Are these schools providing teachers with the necessary professional development for them to effectively teach their students? Will we be able to overcome the obstacles that were found in these two very different libraries in our schools, or will we see a difference between our students who have access at home and those who do not?

Learning to search effectively is not easy. This post provides a look at four types of searchers and some crucial teaching skills to teach your students. Do your students know:
* How and when to use quotation mark?

* How and when to use dashes (or minus signs)?

* When to use two periods?

* How to do a site search?

* How to use country codes?

* What a filter bubble is?

You will also find a link to Eli Pariser's TedTalk on filter bubbles as well as a short video on finding primary sources.

This report from Pew Internet and American Life looks at how teachers use technology both at home and in their classroom, with a focus on teachers of middle and high school students. The survey was taken by 2,462 teachers who teach either Advanced Placement (AP) courses (1,750) or work with the National Writing Project (NWP) (712 teachers). A few of the finding are listed below. 

* 92% of these teachers say the internet has a “major impact” on their ability to access content, resources, and materials for their teaching

* 73% of AP and NWP teachers saying that they and/or their students use their cell phones in the classroom or to complete assignments

* Teachers of low income students, however, are much less likely than teachers of the highest income students to use tablet computers (37% v. 56%) or e-readers (41% v. 55%) in their classrooms and assignments

There are many other findings. This report is available online through the Pew website. The link goes to the Summary of the Findings but and you may acccess the full report from this page.