A decade ago when a surge of interest in placing computers in classrooms was joined to available public and private money, U.S. schools went on a rampage of buying and distributing devices to students and teachers. At that time I wrote a post about a puzzling fact that was overlooked or simply ignored: With increased access to new technologies, there is little reliable and valid evidence showing that these technology investments have yielded gains in student achievement.
That was then and this is now. Amid a pandemic-induced shift of face-to-face lessons to online instruction, the question is irrelevant. The need is that every single public school child must have a device to use for remote instruction.
While there was certainly a digital divide a decade ago even amidst the splurge spending for devices, school closings due to the pandemic have pushed districts to triple-time distribution of devices and Internet connections to families lacking either or both. Yet, the lack of solid evidence that student computer use–especially now when lessons are online–is strongly associated with increased test scores and other academic outcomes remains puzzling. So I updated that post and publish it now.
After decades of school and classroom use of new technologies, some facts have CONTINUE READING: Does Classroom Use of Computers Cause Gains in Students’ Academic Achievement? | Larry Cuban on School Reform and Classroom Practice