This morning, my son asked me a question about a train with which we were playing. I told him that I did not know the answer. He said, “We have to look it up on the computer at the trains website.”
He turns three in June.
Monthly archives for March, 2008
Internet Use for Math
OK, one more “finding” (see post below). The figure below points out a trend that shows up in all of the data I’m analyzing, and the trend that led me to the phrase “digital horserace.” You’ll notice that the states that are above the national average in student use of the Internet for math are all in the Southeast. Additionally, most of the states in the Northeast are below the national average. My interpretation is that, in large part, one or two states jumped on the ed. tech. bandwagon early and then their “neighbors” developed a need to “keep up” (hence the horserace). I know, for example, that West Virginia made huge commitments to ed. tech. a long time ago. That led Kentucky to jump aboard the bandwagon along with, eventually, other states in the Southeast.
Anyway, some numbers to go with the graphic. Among the sample of fourth-grade students across the nation, 42% said that they did use the Internet to learn things about math (58% said no). The state with the highest percentage of students who reported using the Internet to learn things about math?: Louisiana (56%). That state with the lowest percentage?: Vermont (26%).
Computer Use in Schools Across the States
I’m working on a paper I’ll be presenting at AERA in New York in a few weeks. The paper is essentially about what I refer to as the digital horserace; it’s an examination of 4th grade student computer use across the states and across the years. The data (which come from NAEP) are fascinating! There’s so much to write about that I’m having to limit myself to academic publishing standards. So, I think I’ll use this blog as a space to report regularly on some of the findings. Let’s start with this…
In 2007, teachers across the sampled schools were asked the degree to which their 4th grade students used computers to extend learning. What percentage of teachers do you think said their students “never or hardly ever” use computers this way? Nationally, the statistic is 44%. Teachers in 14 states report rates that are (statistically significantly) greater (i.e. less computer use) than the national average. If you click on the image below, you can see which states are higher and lower than the national average.
In Vermont, 67% of the teachers report that their 4th grade students never or hardly ever use computers to extend math learning. In Hawaii, that number rises to 73%! Nearly 3/4 of all teachers in Hawaii report that their students never or hardly ever use computers to extend math learning.
And, BTW, if you look at the other end of the spectrum, 4% of teachers report that their 4th grade students use computer every day or almost every day to extend math learning. Five states are higher than the national average (Florida, Mississippi, South Dakota, West Virginia, and Wyoming). That figure follows (click on it to enlarge).
What do you think of these statistics and pictures? Do they surprise you?
Are Teachers Ready for 21st Century Learning?
That’s the question/title of an interesting “discussion” among the Teacher Leaders Network, a partner of Teacher Magazine. You can read the discussion and comments here. The part of the discussion excerpted online began with a question based on Karl Fisch’s award-winning blog post in 2007.
The social scientist in me is left wondering about the representativeness of this group of teacher leaders. In research-y terms, I suppose I’m asking if there is selection bias here. Regardless, I find the range of responses pretty fascinating. What about you? Do you think the responses of these teachers is representative of the teachers you know?
Cheating(?) and Facebook
I sure would like to know more about this story. The way CNN reports it makes it all seem harmless to me. What’s wrong with a little digital ingenuity and the creation of an online study group?
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