Skip to main content

Why school computers don't improve student results




The OECD – the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development – conducted a global study on the use of computers in classrooms and the result was quite surprising. Computers don’t improve student results, and could actually be more likely to be associated with lower examination results (BBC.com, September 15, 2015).  

The OECD study examined the impact of technology on international test results (such as PISA – the Program for International Student Assessment) in more than 70 countries. The study measured digital skills and test results in reading, mathematics, and science.

The results showed that in countries where education systems invested heavily in computers, and information and communications technology, there was ‘no noticeable improvement’ in PISA test scores for reading, mathematics, or science. Students who used tablets and computers on a regular basis often tended to do worse on tests than students who used computers moderately (once or twice a week). Students who used computers moderately did ‘somewhat better’ at test results than students who rarely used computers.


South Korea and Shanghai in China showed high student test scores, but they have lower levels of computer use in schools. Singapore schooling has  a moderate use of computers and topped the school test results in digital skills. There was ‘no single country in which the internet is used frequently at school by a majority of students and where students’ performance improved.’ Among the seven countries with the highest level of internet use in school, the OECD study found three countries experienced ‘significant declines’ in students’ reading performances – Australia, New Zealand, and Sweden. Another three of the seven countries had ‘stagnated’ in terms of students’ reading performances – Spain, Norway, and Denmark.



Computers in schools were touted as the approach to narrow the socio-economic gap between the poor and wealthy in terms of education and learning. However the OECD study shows that technology does not narrow the socio-economic gap – it might even amplify it.

Why? The lower school results could be related to raising too many false hopes – pinning high results on the use of technology. Classroom technology could be a distraction. And often the computerised programs had ‘prefabricated’ homework answers. Actually the OECD study did not examine why - that's the next step in analysing the results.


However the use of computers in schools ‘can’t be turned back’ but school and education officials should determine how technology can complement the foundations of good teaching, quality curricula, and a focus on assisting students achieve their full potential.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh  (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...
1 comment
Read more

The acacia thorn trees of Kenya

There are nearly 800 species of acacia trees in the world, and most don’t have thorns. The famous "whistling thorn tree" and the Umbrella Thorn tree of Kenya are species of acacia that do have thorns, or spines. Giraffes and other herbivores normally eat thorny acacia foliage, but leave the whistling thorn alone. Usually spines are no deterrent to giraffes. Their long tongues are adapted to strip the leaves from the branches despite the thorns. The thorny acacia like dry and hot conditions. The thorns typically occur in pairs and are 5-8 centimetres (2-3 inches) long. Spines can be straight or curved depending on the species. MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author of:- Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Suda...
1 comment
Read more

Apes go to the movies - and remember the scenes

Apes remember major events in movies, even after a single viewing. That’s the findings of primate research in Japan (New Scientist, September 17, 2015). Researchers at the Kyoto University in Japan conducted experiments with two species of apes – chimpanzees and bonobo primates – to test their memory and recall. Instead of using food to test memory, they used films. The researchers made two short movies to show to the apes. Fumihiro Kano and his colleague, Satoshi Hirata, starred in the films with another person dressed as an ape. They wanted to have strong dramatic scenes to see if the apes remembered them. In the first 30-second movie the character ape bursts through a door on the right hand side (there is also a door on the left hand side) and attacks the two researchers (characters) 18 seconds after the start. After 24 seconds a human character choses one of two weapons next to each other and launched a revenge attack on the ape. In the second 30-second movie t...
Post a Comment
Read more