Bloom-ing Heck! The Activities of Australian Science Teachers and Students Two Years into a 1:1 Laptop Program Across 14 High Schools

This study examines the responses of 1245 science students and 47 science teachers from 14 Catholic high schools in Sydney, Australia, 2010. Two years into a 1:1 laptop program, the types of activities engaged in with laptops as self-reported by teachers and students are analysed. The activities are differentiated from lower- to higher-order using Bloom’s Digital Taxonomy. Though the shift has been to use pen and paper less and laptops more, it is found that the modal practice for students is the lower-order paradigm of note-taking and working from textbooks through electronic means by word processing and electronic textbooks, plus simple online searching. Students would like to engage in more higher-order activities such as blogging and video editing but these are not favoured by teachers. Datalogging and databases, despite being encouraged or even mandated by the Board of Studies NSW, are rare experiences. Most science teachers appear to use simulations but students do not report the same experience. Investment must be made in the professional development of teachers to empower and encourage them to integrate higher-order tasks and to capitalise on the opportunities offered by 1:1 laptops.

[1]  Peggy A. Ertmer,et al.  Teacher value beliefs associated with using technology: Addressing professional and student needs , 2010, Comput. Educ..

[2]  Carrie B. Fried,et al.  In-class laptop use and its e V ects on student learning , 2006 .

[3]  Charoula Angeli,et al.  Professional development for computer‐enhanced learning: a case study with science teachers , 2008 .

[4]  William R. Penuel,et al.  Implementation and Effects Of One-to-One Computing Initiatives , 2006 .

[5]  K. Elliott,et al.  Middle Year Students Talk: Science Sux or Science Rocks! , 2010 .

[6]  Oscar Valiente 1-1 in Education: Current Practice, International Comparative Research Evidence and Policy Implications , 2010 .

[7]  Laura M. O’Dwyer,et al.  Special Edition: Educational Outcomes and Research from 1:1 Computing Settings , 2010 .

[8]  Hee-Sun Lee,et al.  Technology-Rich Inquiry Science in Urban Classrooms: What are the Barriers to Inquiry Pedagogy? , 2002 .

[9]  John T. Guthrie,et al.  MOTIVATING STRUGGLING READERS IN MIDDLE SCHOOL THROUGH AN ENGAGEMENT MODEL OF CLASSROOM PRACTICE , 2003 .

[10]  Richard Halverson,et al.  How New Technologies Have (and Have Not) Changed Teaching and Learning in Schools , 2009 .

[11]  Luke Houghton,et al.  The wiki way of learning , 2009 .

[12]  Benjamin S. Bloom,et al.  A Taxonomy for Learning, Teaching, and Assessing: A Revision of Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives , 2000 .

[13]  Michele W. Spitulnik,et al.  Supporting Teachers’ Use of Technology in Science Instruction Through Professional Development: A Literature Review , 2008 .

[14]  Norman McCulla,et al.  The Australian curriculum: who are we? , 2015 .

[15]  Simon J. Crook,et al.  Seeing Eye-to-Eye on ICT: Science Student and Teacher Perceptions of Laptop Use across 14 Australian Schools. , 2013 .

[16]  A. McFarlane,et al.  Teaching and learning with ICT within the subject culture of secondary school science , 2007 .

[17]  James Franklin Preston Technology's impact on student understanding and retention of motion and forces , 2008 .

[18]  M. Carter Visible learning: a synthesis of over 800 meta‐analyses relating to achievement , 2009 .

[19]  Libby F. Gerard,et al.  Getting from Here to There: The Roles of Policy Makers and Principals in Increasing Science Teacher Quality , 2010 .

[20]  Jacob L. Vigdor,et al.  Scaling the Digital Divide: Home Computer Technology and Student Achievement , 2010 .

[21]  Barbara Means,et al.  Evaluation of Evidence-Based Practices in Online Learning: A Meta-Analysis and Review of Online Learning Studies , 2009 .

[22]  Oya Y. Rieger Search Engine Use Behavior of Students and Faculty: User Perceptions and Implications for Future Research , 2009, First Monday.

[23]  Qing Li Student and Teacher Views About Technology , 2007 .

[24]  D. Mertens Research and Evaluation in Education and Psychology: Integrating Diversity with Quantitative, Qualitative, and Mixed Methods , 1997 .

[25]  P. Twining Oversold and underused: computers in the classroom , 2002 .

[26]  Helga A. H. Rowe Learning with Personal Computers: Issues, Observations and Perspectives , 1992 .

[27]  John Ainley,et al.  ICT in the Teaching of Science and Mathematics in Year 8 in Australia: report from the IEA Second International Technology in Education Study (SITES) survey , 2010 .

[28]  Sarah Hug,et al.  Teaching and Learning Physics in a 1:1 Laptop School , 2008 .

[29]  Debra Ingram,et al.  Laptop Initiative Evaluation Report , 2008 .

[30]  Samia Khan,et al.  New Pedagogies on Teaching Science with Computer Simulations , 2011 .

[31]  Ratchapak Chitaree,et al.  The effect of Interactive Lecture Demonstrations on students’ understanding of heat and temperature: a study from Thailand , 2009 .

[32]  Michael D. Kaplowitz,et al.  A Comparison of Web and Mail Survey Response Rates , 2004 .

[33]  William R. Penuel,et al.  Using Handheld Computers to Support Improved Classroom Assessment in Science: Results from a Field Trial , 2006 .

[34]  Bob Johnstone,et al.  Never Mind the Laptops: Kids, Computers, and Transformation of Learning. , 2004 .

[35]  Jerry Wellington,et al.  Has ICT come of age? Recurring debates on the role of ICT in education, 1982–2004 , 2005 .

[36]  B. Bloom Taxonomy of educational objectives , 1956 .

[37]  Larry Johnson and Samantha Adams and Keen Haywood The NMC 2011 Horizon Report: K-12 Edition , 2011 .

[38]  James Cengiz Gulek,et al.  Learning With Technology: The Impact of Laptop Use on Student Achievement , 2005 .

[39]  Sarah Hug,et al.  A Study of the 1:1 Laptop Program at the Denver School of Science & Technology. , 2007 .

[40]  J. Gillard,et al.  Melbourne Declaration on Educational Goals for Young Australians. , 2008 .

[41]  Using information and communication technology (ICT) to the maximum: learning and teaching biology with limited digital technologies , 2012 .

[42]  Donn Ritchie,et al.  What factors facilitate teacher skill, teacher morale, and perceived student learning in technology-using classrooms? , 2002, Comput. Educ..

[43]  A. Freeman,et al.  The NMC Horizon Report: 2013 K-12 Edition. , 2009 .

[44]  Mark E. Weston,et al.  The End of Techno-Critique: The Naked Truth about 1:1 Laptop Initiatives and Educational Change , 2010 .

[45]  Avi Hofstein,et al.  The influence of web‐based chemistry learning on students' perceptions, attitudes, and achievements , 2007 .

[46]  Talina Drabsch,et al.  The Australian curriculum , 2013 .

[47]  Claire Brooks,et al.  Using Blogging for Higher Order Learning in Large Cohort University Teaching: A Case Study. , 2008 .

[48]  John G. Hedberg,et al.  A framework for Web 2.0 learning design , 2010 .

[49]  Damian Bebell,et al.  One to One Computing: A Summary of the Quantitative Results from the Berkshire Wireless Learning Initiative , 2010 .

[50]  R. Gunstone,et al.  Science and computer-based technologies: attitudes of secondary science teachers , 2003 .

[51]  Diane J Skiba,et al.  Bloom's digital taxonomy and word clouds. , 2013, Nursing education perspectives.