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Running header: Impact of Technology on Education

IMPACT OF TECHNOLOGY ON EDUCATION 3

University of West Alabama

Abstract

This work will be a comprehensive analysis in Chicago Illinois, using 6th grade participants from a Title 1 elementary school. This study aimed to determine whether one to one technology (1:1 will be used hereafter) effects the achievement level of among students from designated low-income families (Orey et al. 2009).

Chapter One: Introduction

School officials and educators have attempted different approaches to promote pupil participation and academic performance, including the implementation of instructional technologies. The No Child Left Behind Act has aimed, according to the U.S. Department of Education (2002), to eradicate the digital divide and to have children digitally literate by the end of the eighth grade, independent of age, socioeconomic status, geographic location and impairment.

Statement of the Research Problem

The hypothesis and core aim for this study is to determine whether 1:1 technology can impact academic achievement and participation of designated low-income students.

The use of 1:1 Technology alone is not enough to guarantee stellar academic performance and student participation. It is vital to ensure that teachers themselves employ the use of best teaching practices. Teachers and administrators are constantly searching for new ideas that would make classrooms more technology friendly as this can greatly impact academic performance (Mallia and Gorg 2013). Poor academic performance and low-class participation rates is a major problem in many schools in the country today especially for schools in low income and minority neighborhoods (Mallia and Gorg 2013). The use of 1:1 technology can serve to improve this state of affairs.

Could teachers increase student productivity by the use of technology? Anchored instruction theory supports this assertion. The theory emphasizes the place of practical instruction that is anchored in real life experiences using technology. This approach in which learners get the opportunity to interact with the material increases academic performance and participation substantially.

Data and Identification of the Problem

Poor academic performance especially in areas such as reading skills and mathematics in many low-income public schools is a cause of concern for education stakeholders. This poor academic performance coupled with low class participation rates raises a lot of questions about the quality of education in Chicago’s public schools especially in schools in low-income and minority neighborhoods. For this study the following research question was addressed: Will 1:1 Technology increase academic performance of low-income students? As part of this study, the investigation included one key research hypothesis: Implementing 1:1 Technology will drastically increase the academic performance of low-income students. As the data below clearly shows, academic performance in public schools with low-income and minority students is in dire need of improvement if they are to achieve a secure academic future.

Nearly half of Chicago schools have failed to meet the state's performance threshold on their new accountability system, making some of them possible targets of state intervention (Illinois Report Card 2013). The state ranked 20 percent of its nearly 3,800 schools as "underperforming" or "lowest performer" (Illinois Report Card 2013). Landing at the bottom two rungs on the new four-level ratings of the state will trigger significant aid from the state. It will grant additional money to the failing students, visits from learning performance experts, and collaborations with higher-rated schools.

Figure 1

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Figure 2 Figure 3

Massive disparity exists in terms of low-income families in Chicago’s public schools as compared to citywide statistics. In Figure 1 above, over 52% of Chicago families that have children under the age of 18 are classified as low-income. A further 85% of students in the Chicago Public School system are low income. Figure 2 & Figure 3 correctly breaks down the state of student performance in Chicago as compared with statewide academic in the year 2013. In these statistics Chicago comes in last time after time after time in the three-key metrics of performance, Reading, Math and Science. In 2009, U.S. schools with small proportions of low-income students did as well as schools anywhere in the world on the International Student Assessment Program — while American schools with more than 75 per cent low-income enrollment scored like schools in developing countries.

Low-income enrollments are the norm in Chicago. Shockingly, a whopping 85 percent of Chicago Public School (CPS) students were from low-income families (Illinois Report Card 2013). Why is the proportion of low-income CPS students as high as it is when the proportion of low-income families with children under the age of 18 across the city is 52 per cent? This is mainly because so many parents of the middle class are unwilling to send their children to the public schools in the town. Instead they send them to private schools, or they move to the suburbs when their kids reach school age (or high school age).

That is not a new occurrence. It is a legacy of racial segregation that for decades characterized Chicago and its public schools (Weis et al. 2014). The schools here moved from predominantly white and middle-class to largely black, Latino, and low-income in the 1950s,' 60s and' 70s. Locally, nationally, and internationally, the link between low-income students and low-test scores has been well documented (Weis et al. 2014). It's clear not only when comparing the public schools in Chicago with the rest of the Illinois state, but also within CPS itself. The CPS data analysis shows that the higher the proportion of low-income children in a school, the worse the school ends up performing on the ISAT and the PSAE — and the correlation is dramatic (Weis et al. 2014).

The Illinois Board of Education's school report cards once again showed dreadful performance by CPS students. 55 per cent of Illinois students met or exceeded state standards in reading on the Prairie State Achievement Exam given to 11th graders while only 36 percent of CPS students did so (Weis et al. 2014).

But the low-income ratio across the state is 50 percent—35 points lower than that of Chicago. And when only the low-income students' test scores are compared, the difference is much smaller: nationally, 35 percent met or exceeded reading expectations, compared to 31 percent in Chicago. Likewise, the test-score gap in math and science is slight when the comparison is limited to students with low incomes. As part of this study, the investigation included one key research hypothesis: Implementing 1:1 Technology will drastically increase the academic performance of low-income students.

Impact on Student Achievement

The purpose of this proposed study will be to decide whether 1:1 technology has effects on academic achievement of low-income students. It has been verified many times over that students who do not exhibit satisfactory academic achievement end up living less successful lives in future as compared to those that do (Wright, 2009). Technology changed the way lessons are taught today in the classroom. The teaching methodologies have undergone a paradigm shift from the traditional forms of education to the more modern ones. The role of the teacher has also changed from being the only source of information to be the facilitator of learning. The role of students has also shifted from being passive receivers of information to active discoverers of knowledge.

Suhr et al. focused on a two-year sample in upper elementary classes, where students 1:1 outperformed non-laptop student on tests in English Language Arts (ELA). Similarly, the review of the Texas 1:1 laptop pilot by Shapley et al. explores the degree to which a sample of middle schools successfully implemented a 1:1 system, as well as the relationship between the impact of implementation at school, teacher, and student level, and the achievement of students in reading and mathematics. The study by Bebell and Kay also discussed the introduction of a state pilot 1:1 initiative using ELA students and math achievement as one of many outcome measures.

Therefore, while each of these studies has unique research goals, data sources, and outcome measures, most papers analyze similar teacher and student outcomes and thus it is possible to distinguish certain general patterns across the different study outcomes. The studies presented here collectively illustrate several common themes around 1:1 computing system, and their effects.

Through their research, Bebell and Kay found that teaching and learning habits changed when the computers, digital learning environments and other technological tools were given to students and teachers. In the five 1:1 schools they studied, they found that while the program's implementation and results differed across schools and throughout the three implementation years, exposure to 1:1 computing resulted throughout significant improvements in teacher practices, student achievement, student participation, and student research skills relative to the control situation. Whether these results are replicable amongst low-income students is a key aspect the researchers will seek to investigate in the proposed study.

Research Methods

This study plans to use quasi-experimental research using mixed methods for data collection through student observations and data collected from Discovery Assessment reports progress monitoring. Random Sampling will also be used in the research methodology. Teachers will implement the use of 1:1 Technology through the use of Chromebooks during their mathematics and reading classes. Teachers will employ the use of interactive lessons and exercises on the Chromebooks that will give the students the opportunity to learn using a new and more interactive learning model. The Discovery Assessment Reports will be used to determine if they can recall and retain the information taught.

Summary

This data highlights the specific problem of student academic achievement in mathematics. This study will focus on low-income 6th grade students from a Title 1 elementary school. 1:1 Technology empowers students to take advantage of new forms of learning, develop digital skills and improve learning effectiveness. This study will use random sampling as the research methodology. This study posits that the introduction of 1:1 technology in classrooms would help students remember and recall information that is being taught. This project will conduct student observations and review data from Discovery Assessment reports at the Elementary School for the 6th grade students.

Chapter 2: Literature Review

Introduction

1:1 Technology has been a hot topic of debate in the past few years and their benefits have been scrutinized to good effect. Various studies have been undertaken to investigate the impact that 1:1 Technology has on academic performance. Different studies have yielded different results and whereas the benefits are palpable, the cost of instituting the initiative at certain times proves to be too high a price to bear. Anchored instruction theory emphasizes the place of practical instruction that is anchored in real life experiences using technology. Teachers are moved from a source of information into a coach. It is widely used at the primary level and applied to competencies in mathematics, reading and language. Anchored instruction provides an environment for active learning through challenging and motivating learners. The story or anchor contains embedded data in addition to extraneous information. Therefore, it is the prerogative of the learner to decipher, organize and extract all the relevant pieces of information.

There is a wide range of studies on the subject of technology-led growth in education. This research concentrates on the effect of the use of technology at school and at home on both the social and educational aspects. The researcher will discuss relevant literature for our review in the following sections. There are very few longitudinal studies that explain technology's causal relationship to academic performance in America in education.

In summary, technology investment has ambiguous educational impact, and the educational gains are most often limited. Investments in education technology are typically divided into three categories: general investment in school ICT, individual student laptops, and educational software, i.e. eLearning. The researcher will focus primarily on the second form of investment, which is currently the biggest trend in education policy. The researchers will be presenting studies on general Technology investments in education.

Effect of General ICT in Education

A randomized controlled experiment was performed in California where more than a thousand computers were randomly distributed free to children attending 6th-10th grade for home use (Fairlie and Kalil, 2016). They noted that the children who were given computers are more likely to have a social networking site, but also spend more time communicating directly with peers. Their findings found modest effects on educational outcomes and only a slight positive contribution to the social development of children. Faber et al. (2015) studied the effects of government improvements in ICT on children's school success in England by increasing the Internet connection speeds.

The researchers claim that the improvements are produced uniformly across the country and can thus manipulate external variations in order to estimate the causal effect (Wright, 2009). The researchers connected the test scores of primary and secondary students to the availability of computers in their homes. They found out that it has a limited impact on the educational achievement or productivity of the students. Malamud and Pop-Eleches (2011) investigated a Romanian voucher program in which 35,000 vouchers worth 200 euros were issued to subsidize the purchase of low-income home computers for students enrolled in public schools in Romania. The study uses a discontinuity framework for regression to estimate the causal effect on academic achievement, cognitive abilities, computer skills and different non-cognitive outcomes. The researchers noted that the group being studied receives significantly lower scores in Math, English, and Romanian, but significantly higher scores in a computer skills test and self-reported computer fluency measures.

Effect of Laptop Programs in School

In 2002, the first large-scale one-to -one laptop system was introduced in Maine State for educational purposes. All of the state's 7th and 8th grade students and teachers were given laptops. The study involved carrying out a study comparing tests in handwritten writing results in the year 2000 with the same type of testing done after the laptops were implemented on the machine in 2005. Writing efficiency is improved by one-third of a standard deviation but it does not seem to influence other types of tests (Shapley and Brite 2008). The basic comparisons made in the study may not however be sufficiently rigorous to establish causality (Wright, 2009).

The simple comparisons made in the research may not however be sufficiently thorough to claim causality. Suhr et al. (2010) are studying the effect of introducing a one-to -one laptop program for graders 4th and 5th in a California school district. They use a quasi-experimental design for the research. After two years, the students obtaining a laptop perform better in English language arts than non-laptop students, and tests measuring writing strategies and literary response and review. The Texas laptop initiative was implemented in 21 state schools, and Shapley et al. (2009) studied the effects. The test group was paired with an acceptable control group comprised of schools that did not receive laptops on various criteria such as school size, district, and minority proportion. The study shows some positive effects in some of the classes on reading abilities. There are no discovered negative effects while conducting the study.

In addition, a study conducted by Cristia et al. (2017) looks at the One Laptop per Child Program in Peru. The goal of this program is to provide children with laptops for use at school and at home to enhance learning in one of the world's poorest countries. The paper focuses on Peru's randomized 1:1 laptop program that was initiated by the Peruvian government. Fifteen months after the implementation

of the project, the research tests were collected. The initiative has led to a significant rise in computer usage both at school and at home. In addition, there is no major benefit on exams in neither mathematics nor language courses. There is however a small effect on the students ' cognitive abilities (Wright, 2009).

Synthesis of Literature Review

The success of both general ICT investments in education and the implementation of laptop programs is having substantial impact on students from low-income backgrounds. There is considerable evidence that computer and cognitive skills are growing but evidence of spill-over effects on other subjects is low (Wright, 2009) . The results are unclear however, and it is difficult to draw any conclusions in the field of study so far. However, the established literature focuses mostly on the impact in lower educational levels and often on students from lower socioeconomic backgrounds (Weis et al. 2014)

Chapter 3:  Methodology

Introduction

           1:1 Implementation refers to an initiative in which every student in the classroom, school, school district, etc., has a laptop or computer, in the classroom to use and learn with as a resource. The 1:1 Implementation Classroom was for the instructor and also for the students involved in this study during its first year of implementation. This particular Sixth Grade classroom is one of two Sixth Grade classrooms used in the education pilot program for City of Chicago District # 299. The purpose of this chapter is to introduce the research methodology of random sampling which will be used in the study. Quasi-experimental research will also be used alongside mixed methods for data collection through student observations and data collected from Discovery Assessment reports progress monitoring. Teachers will implement the use of 1:1 Technology through the use of Chromebooks during their mathematics and reading classes. Teachers will employ the use of interactive lessons and exercises on the Chromebooks that will give the students the opportunity to learn using a new and more interactive learning model.

Population

          This study will be an in-depth analysis of Chicago Illinois, using 6th grade participants from a Title 1 elementary school. This research aimed to evaluate how one-to-one technology (1:1 will be used hereafter) actually impacts low-income students’ academic achievement.

Sample 

Participants in this proposed study will be students from two separate classes in the Sixth Grade. The school has 84.3 percent of the school’s population that come from low-income backgrounds.  The total number of students who will be involved in the study would be 10 students. The researchers’ settled on 10 students because it was a reasonable number that will serve as the appropriate representation of the target population. The researchers also took into account the limited resources available for the study. A small and comprehensive sample size of 10 students would not only be an accurate representation of the population under observation it would also be cost effective to the researchers. The sample consists of three male Caucasian participants, three Hispanic Female participants, two African American female participants, one Caucasian female participant, and one African American male participant. The participants’ ages vary from 10 to 13 years old.  

Sample Technique

This study plans to use quasi-experimental research using mixed methods for data collection through student observations and data collected from Discovery Assessment progress report. The sampling technique that will be used in this particular case is the random sampling technique. This is because using the random sampling methodology everyone has an equal chance of being selected for data collection. Random sampling also ensures that the sample size is large enough to generalize to the entire population of 6th grade students. In this case, the total population of 6th grade students are 70 students. The methods which will be used in the data collection will be student observations and data collected from progress monitoring assessments (Weis et al. 2014). 

Role of Participants and Impact on Participants 

           People involved in this comprehensive research were students of sixth grade from two separate classes, but at the same Title 1 school in Chicago Illinois. In the classroom, technology influences the academic achievement and performance of the learners (Weis et al. 2014).

Plan for Protection of Human Subjects

          When undertaking the research project, ethics should always be considered and taken seriously.  The study's researcher aims to ensure all participants are covered against any damage that may arise as a result of the job. Researchers in the project will be inclusive of teachers who will be part and parcel of the collaborative process.

In the event that damage can be done to participants it is important that the researcher takes into consideration if the study can be performed in a safer manner and if the knowledge obtained warrants any potential harm.

        Participants and their parents are told of their rights, and informed consent is received from the participants' parents or guardians. Information from the student evaluation will be used to gather data; however, information from participants will be kept confidential. Student assessment forms will also be kept confidential, and no identifying details will be put on any forms. Numbers will be used instead of their actual names, to identify participants. When data is collected, the researcher will be restricted in access. Notify all participants of their right to withdraw or request that their data not be used in the analysis.

Variables   

      There are two variables in this study. The independent variable is the 1:1Technology implementation. The dependent variable is the aspect of student achievement. In testing for the results, the researcher will use a form of Pearson correlation analysis in order to find out whether or not student achievement was linearly associated with 1:1 Technology implementation. That will turn the categorical data into quantitative data.

Timeline

          The researchers will collect data over a five-week period. Two approaches will be used to monitor student involvement. Next, the researchers will create an Engagement Observation Method for quantitative data collection. The form will allow for tracking and collection of data over a course of a lesson on ten randomly selected students.

         Second, the researcher will also use seating charts to record data about student engagement. Using fast scans of the entire class at regular intervals of 3 or 5 minutes, the researchers coded each student as either on-task (+) or off-task-) (under the name of each student. Although this did not give the researchers precise behavioral details, the researchers were able to gather a broader set of data. In addition to student observation methods, the researchers each documented their observations and field notes in narrative format for each day that they incorporated technology into their lessons inside a teacher journal. This data gathering method will help the researchers to collect more qualitative data about their personal experiences, achievements and technology integration failures. The researcher’s journals will be an informal resource that will be explained after a lecture, regarding the experiences. The researcher will not map out any specific students.

  Constitutive and Operational Definitions

       1:1 Technology- It applies to the technical movement of every child in the classroom, school, school district, etc., possessing a laptop or computer, using and studying as a resource in the classroom.

       Anchored Instruction Theory: This applies to the real-world experience as the core content of instruction for schooling. Students explore, solve problems in various ways of living the real world. The reality of the living world is referred to as the "anchor," and the process of establishing and identifying the real living world to solve the problems is figuratively referred to as "casting the anchor." "Anchored" instruction is one of the key educational models under the constructive theory of learning. A cognitive and scientific team developed it in 1992, under the guidance of American professor John Bransford at Vanderbilt University. The Anchored Theory of Instruction emphasizes learning based on technology. Students take the technology as the carrier, use the reality of the living world as their main content to discover problems, generate questions and ultimately solve the problems.

Description of Data 

         Four tests are conducted over the whole school year with 9-12 weeks between each evaluation. The predictive benchmark tests are intended to forecast the success during the academic year on the student's next high-stakes test.

Reliability and Validity of Instrument

      In this study, the results of Topic Tests in Math, Discovery Education Assessment (Math), and attendance were used to determine if 1:1 Technology positively impacts student academic achievement. The Topic Studies were adapted from the Pearson enVision Math sequence that Chicago Public Schools has embraced (Mallia and Gorg 2013).

Collaborative Resources

    Collaborative resources include several different components.  First, the primary resource used will be the teachers. The teachers are responsible for implementing 1:1 technology, completing evaluation tasks, providing full progress tracking evaluations for the participants and analyzing data obtained to guide instruction. Second, access to the online assessment program is provided by the school district.  The students will use this tool to complete their reporting evaluations of success. The data will then be obtained from the assessment reports of the program. Collaborative resources include several different components. First, the primary resource used will be the teachers. The teachers are responsible for implementing 1:1 technology, completing evaluation tasks, providing full progress tracking evaluations for the participants and analyzing data obtained to guide instruction. Second, access to the online assessment program is provided by the school district.  The students will use this tool to complete their reporting evaluations of success. The data will then be obtained from the assessment reports of the program.

Leverage Plan 

             Resources will be acquired for 1:1 Technology program from within the school that promotes technology in education. The school district can be leveraged to provide resources for the program in the form of laptops to facilitate the 1:1 project study. The laptops will be vital in being an instrument of study for the duration of the entire program.

           Teachers can employ the use of instructional content in the transmission of pertinent educational content using a variety of different digital formats (such as video, slideshows and online texts). The students can be able to access such content independently and easily free up the teacher’s individual resources for other activities. Furthermore, students themselves can be leveraged for better implementation of the program through the use of group projects during class time, while employing the use of online collaborative tools which can greatly serve to expand the entire scope of their learning.

          Partnership with the Chicago Public Schools (CPS) will be crucial to the success of the program. However, even as the researcher liaises together with the relevant school districts it is important to ensure that key stakeholders are involved and brought on board early on. These stakeholders include, teacher, students, parents, the community and even key school board members. There will be a working partnership with the school administrators to ensure that the best and most effective behavioral models of digital learners and leaders are modeled effectively.

Limitations

          This research was also performed with participants of Sixth Grade aged 11 and 12. At this level, children have less control than in high-school and depend more on their parents for guidance and support in their schooling efforts. Also, not every child in the Traditional Classroom participated in this research, whereas all students participated in the 1:1 Implementation Classroom. The differences between the number of participating students could skew or misrepresent the data collected and evaluated for this analysis, which could then skew or misrepresent the outcomes.

References

Art. Ii.—Theories Of Education. (2010). Theories of Education, 1-15. doi:10.31826/9781463230463-001