Literacy+in+the+Laptop+Classroom

Information Literacy in the Laptop Classroom
MARK WARSCHAUER University of California, Irvine

Katherine Tran, Lauren Duncan, Matthew Cavin, and Jenelle Tuttle
= = flat =Introduction=

Information Literacy in the Laptop Classroom

 * //**Background/Context:**// Technological and economic changes have placed a high demand on developing students’ information literacy and research skills. Attempts to integrate educational technology in the class have proved disappointing because K-12 teachers have difficulty integrating shared computers into instruction. As a result, a number of schools and districts have piloted one-to-one laptop programs, in which each student has access to their own laptop and is wirelessly connected to the internet throughout the day.


 * //**Purpose/Objective:**//The paper analyzes the information and research practices of 10 K-12 schools in California and Maine who have launched the one-to-one program.


 * //**Research Design/Data Collection:**// The author analyzed data from a variety of sources, including: classroom observations, interviews, surveys, and teacher/student samples.


 * //**Findings/Results:**// This study found that all laptop schools learned to access information, manage it, and incorporate it into written and multimedia projects. However, the process of evaluating information and analyzing it to for the purpose of knowledge production varied across schools. The author found that some schools succeeded in promoting scholarly approaches to developing information literacy and research skills whereas other schools limited themselves to teaching basic computer functions and internet uses.


 * //**Conclusions/Recommendations:**// This study concluded that one-to-one laptop programs were successful in promoting information literacy and research skills, but that socioeconomic status, school values, and beliefs played a large role in shaping the implementation of the program and its achievements.

The jobs that drive today’s new knowledge economy and provide people with power, prestige, and high pay all require high analytical skills, creative communication, and the ability to manage tasks from a number of projects. Robert Reich, former secretary of labor, referred to these as symbolic analyst services. Most symbolic analysts are constantly using digital technology to network with others, research and analyze information, and create multimedia projects for diverse audiences. They require a high degree of information literacy, which is defined as the ability to access information effectively and efficiently, evaluate the information and its sources, and incorporate selected information into one’s knowledge base. These technological changes have prompted educational reform efforts so that schools can better help students develop the information literacy and research skills needed to succeed in our current economy. It has long been believed that incorporating greater amounts of technology into schools would help foster this reform. However, a number of challenges have made this difficult. For example, scheduling computers in advance has been one major conflict while students’ unequal access to computers at home is another. One-to-one laptop programs seeks to eliminate the obstacles of shared computers by providing a more natural integration of technology into instruction. This study will specifically focus on information use and research practices in one-to-one laptop programs.
 * __Background__**

This study presents findings from a 2-year (2003-2005) laptop and literacy study. It seeks to answer the following research questions: The study consists of a sample of 10 schools (two elementary, four middle schools, three high schools, and one combined elementary-junior high school) from Maine and California. Maine represents a state with high test scores, progressive education, a relatively homogenous population in terms of language and ethnicity, and a public statewide laptop program. California represents a state with many failing schools, a diverse population, a more conservative educational climate aimed at raising test scores, and a mix of laptop programs launched in individual schools and districts. The following sources of data were conducted and analyzed:
 * __Methodology__ **
 * 1) What patterns of information use and research were noted in the laptop classroom, and how did it compare with what teachers and students said was typical in their prior non-laptop classes?
 * 2) How did approaches to information use and research differ according to the social context of laptop schools?
 * A total of 650 hours of classroom observations.
 * Interviews from 61 teachers, 32 other school staff members, 67 students, and 31 parents.
 * Online surveys from teachers and students from 3 of 10 schools
 * Documents and assignments completed by case study students

Research suggests that students in laptop schools learned how to access information, manage it, and incorporate it into their written and multimedia projects. However, scholarly approaches to accessing information varied across socioeconomic contexts.
 * __Findings__ **



= Information and Research Patterns in Laptop Schools = Two of the most frequent educational activities carried out with laptop programs are gathering information online and gathering data and analyzing it. This ongoing access to tools for gathering data and analyzing it brought about five important changes in instruction:
 * 1) More just-in-time learning
 * 2) More autonomous, individualized learning
 * 3) Greater ease of conducting research
 * 4) More empirical investigation
 * 5) More opportunities for in-depth learning

__** 1. JUST-IN-TIME LEARNING **__ Cognitive scientists suggest that people learn best when information is presented to them at the time of need. Teachers refer to this as taking advantage of teachable moments. One of the greatest benefits of laptop programs is the wealth of information that can be brought into the classroom at the time when needs can make the most of it.

__** 2. AUTONOMOUS AND INDIVIDUALIZED LEARNING: **__
 * With the vast array of content the internet has to offer, teachers found that it was easier to individualize instruction and differentiate information and content to students.
 * Quote from a teacher, “I really think in laptop class it is going to be student centered because you have a laptop and it can take them anywhere. It’s more teacher as a facilitator. I’m a tool they can use too, but there are so many other tools, and they need to know how to utilize all of the tools....And ultimately when they are adults out there, no matter what job they happen to be in or whatever they do with their lives, they need to be able to utilize any resources they’re exposed to.”

__**3. EASE OF RESEARCH:**__
 * One of the most valuable aspects of information access in the classroom is how it facilitates student research.
 * Factors that facilitate student research:
 * 1) Internet has more information than school libraries
 * 2) The information on the internet is more current and up to date than textbooks
 * 3) It is much easier and faster to find information on the internet than in a library
 * 4) The internet can be accessed directly from the classroom, and for many, at home
 * 5) It is easier to manage, archive, and copy information from the internet than information in print
 * 6) One-to-one internet access makes teachers’ jobs more efficient because they do not need to spend as much time tracking down print resources and photocopying worksheets for the classroom.
 * The extreme ease of finding information online creates special **challenges** for learning how to sort through, select, evaluate, and make use of such a wealth of content.
 * To overcome a challenge like this (depending on the students’ age and literacy level) Teachers provided appropriate forms of scaffolding. For example, giving students 12 pre selected websites on a certain topic instead of setting students loose to search the internet themselves. In other cases teachers make use of specialized search engines for schools like NetTrekker or WebQuests (for guided information-seeking activities)
 * A **LIMITATION** to the study was how often the students copy and pasted is sometimes overlooked because the teachers were so impressed that the students had created a nice-looking poster or presentation that they didn’t bother to critique the included textual content.

__**4. DATA-BASED AND HANDS-ON LEARNING:**__ __** 5. IN-DEPTH LEARNING: **__
 * The use of one-to-one laptops provided more opportunity for students to gather and analyze data themselves rather than using secondhand research.
 * Examples include looking at and analyzing data sets from demographics, test scores, drop out rates, or collecting their own data from class surveys or taking measurements, and using spreadsheets or online graphing tools to analyze the data.
 * Online simulation activities also provide another form of hands-on interactive learning for students in the one-to-one programs. Students from the study carried out simulated frog dissections, virtual open heart surgery, and witnessed simulated cell mitosis and meiosis.
 * 90% of teachers in the study agreed that “students in laptop classes explore topics in more depth”
 * 85% of teachers agreed that “students in laptop classes get more involved in in-depth research.”
 * Internet-connected laptops offered students many alternative ways for attacking an issue or problem, thus allowing them to explore a topic more deeply than in a typical classroom.

=Variation Among Schools in Information Literacy Practices= The above five changes were general patterns researchers noticed across laptop schools, but there was also much variation among schools. Those teachers and schools that began with strong instructional programs for critical inquiry and research were able to make use of laptops to magnify the success of the instruction, but those schools with a weaker focus from the beginning had less success in developing the basics of information literacy. There was a high correlation between strong and weak schools with socioeconomic status (SES). Schools in high-SES neighborhoods generally tended to have more experienced teaching and administrative staff, parents with higher education expectations and a student population that has been primed since an early age to prepare for college. There were exceptions, however, with some low-SES schools doing an excellent job of promoting information literacy and developing student research skills.

=__Developing Scholars at Howard Middle School__ =

= = =__Disconnected at Plum High School__ =  = =
 * Demographics and General Information **
 * Located in a high-income suburban community in southern Maine. The communities median household income was more than $58,000 in 2000, which was 56% higher then the state average.
 * School and distract well funded and extensive support from students’ parents.
 * Known for having one of the most successful laptop programs in the state.
 * The success of the program is is intimately tied to the broader values, goals, and organization including academic expertise and research skills.
 * Program Overview **
 * Overall targets the broader process of critical inquiry
 * The school has a career planning program in which each student meets with the counselor in 5th grade to discuss goals including career and college, they continue this program from 5th-8th grade.
 * The counselor explained that “if fifth and sixth graders want to eventually get their master’s or Ph.D. degrees, they need to start planning early.” (pg. 2525)
 * Enter the laptop program in 7th grade, but begin training in information literacy in 5th grade.
 * All 5th graders attend a 45-minute weekly training session with the librarian who teaches students how to search for information, beginning with electronic catalogs then print resources such as reference books and periodical indexes.
 * More concerned about the process (learning how to access information), not the product. The librarian explained that she aims for these lessons to be transferable into “everyday life”.
 * These students are preferring academic databases over general websites, and it seems linked to their exposure, activities, and projects related to using these technologies.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">One student mentioned why she prefers to use an encyclopedia, “Well sometimes on Google, you don’t really know where the sources are coming from and you don’t really know if they are accurate and trustworthy.” (pg. 2526).
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">By 7th grade, the students enter into the one-to-one laptop program in which they are making the use of computer and Internet for highly interactive forms of learning as they work individually and in groups to define questions or problems, gather and analyze information and data, and develop high quality products as a means of presenting their findings. These were conducted in each of the main subject areas, as well as interdisciplinary projects. Parental Involvement
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">The librarian also organized evening programs for parents where she introduces the online materials and makes connections of how the parents can use these resources for their own needs.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Demographics and General Information **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Located in a rural county in Maine, populated at four people per square mile.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Median household income in the county is only 75% of the state average, less than half of Howard Middle School’s community.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Plum was one of the first high schools in the state to implement a one-to-one laptop program since the owners of a local mill gave the school a large grant to fund the equipment.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Experienced increase in behavioral problems that began with implementation of the laptop program, and thus spends most of the time and effort to deal with behavioral issues over career counseling.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Main librarian only worked part-time
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Few teachers or students were aware of the online databases the state subscribed to.


 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Overview of Projects **
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Very basic Google searches about a very broad topic such as the Amish. Invalid sources, stereotypes and lack of in depth, research oriented thinking. Almost all resources were copied and pasted into their PowerPoint presentations and most of the time was spent on adding clip-art and designs.
 * <span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Hispanics Example

** Expeditionary Learning at Castle Middle **

 * __ Demographics and General Information __**


 * Very different from most other schools in Maine; Castle Middle serves the most ethnically, linguistically and financially diverse population of any Maine school district
 * 25% of students are low-income African, Asian, Middle Eastern, and Latin American refugees and immigrants from around 17 different countries
 * 28 languages are represented in the school


 * __ New Leadership Brings Expeditionary Learning Program __**

Inequality at Castle was reinforced by a complex tracking system that was in place for many years before a new principal came to the school. Gifted students were pushed into accelerated programs, and students who were struggling were given lower-level remedial classes. When the school received a new principal however, everything changed. Mr. Miller brought a pilot program and became one of nine “Expeditionary Learning Outward Bound” schools in 1992. He did away with tracking, and involved ESL and special ED students in mainstream classes as much as possible. Most importantly though, the new program allowed more freedom in collaboration and class scheduling so that teachers could plan large projects that incorporated nearly all of the required subject matter. These projects, called learning expeditions, each took 8-12 weeks to complete, and comprised the majority of the curriculum.


 * __ Evolution of Expeditionary Learning Through Technology: Representing-to-Learn __**

In 2002 and 2003 the school issued laptops to all students in seventh and eighth grade, which altered the expeditionary model significantly. Students now use these to research topics, find information, write their investigation, and produce multimedia presentations. Through the use of technology, the school began using a represent-to-learn model of instruction based around the idea that students learn best when they have something to do with their knowledge. Through the use of their laptops, students complete large-scale projects that are viewed by the rest of the school.

One project involved the creation of an art collage on the topic of freedom. Students incorporated images, paintings, magazine articles, famous speeches, and other content found on the Internet to create presentations involving freedom and the way it changes over time, and how one person's freedom might conflict with another's. They also accompanied their visual projects with written components, all of which were uploaded on the Internet.




 * __ Comparison Between Castle and Plum __**

Both schools used computers in a similar way, but Castle's program had a few key differences that made it a more impactful program. While Plum had students use their laptops to look up information on preselected questions and categories, Castle designed their projects in a much more open format. While both methods encouraged the development of information literacy skills, Plum used the computers as simply a means of finding information. This taught them how to use the Internet and search for things, but it could have gone much further. Castle's projects asked students to interact with one another, create projects within their own means, going further if they had the ability, and then putting the results out into the real world.

Castle furthered student collaboration and interaction by having other students document the progress the first students were making as they progressed through their assignment. This included giving interviews, and filming for a documentary on the project. This encouraged reflection on the part of the students being interviewed, and helped increase knowledge of video technology by the video team.

Finally, Castles approach to ELL students was also unique. They did not place their intermediate or advanced ELL students in special programs or classes, but instead put them in regular classes and assigned them the same learning expeditions as everyone else. They were simply asked to participate in the project and contribute in any meaningful way they could, so that they could be a part of the community project.


 * __ Conclusions __**

__ One-to-One Laptop Programs Have Benefits __
 * Students have more access to "just in time" learning experiences
 * It is easier to implement the types of projects and programs that encourage collaboration and use of various types of media
 * Learning can be individualized easier

__ However... __
 * Beneficial outcomes are uneven from one school to another
 * Everyone has access to the information but not everyone gets the support they need to be able to use it effectively
 * Technology is more likely to be used for higher-order processes and thinking in higher SES schools
 * These attitudes are not set in stone, and the attitude of the community is more important than the SES

__ In Summary __ Individual laptops will not make a bad school good, but they will make a good school better. When used in the appropriate way they can be an invaluable tool for building 21st century skills and providing higher-order projects that include collaboration and integration of multimedia.



=<span style="background-color: transparent; color: #000000; font-family: Arial; font-size: 15px; text-decoration: none; vertical-align: baseline;">Assessment = http://www.polleverywhere.com/free_text_polls/NTExNzI1OTc3