Month: September 2006

Recent (?) Study of Student Use of Computers and the Internet

The National Center For Educational Statistics has released a new study summarizing student use of computers and the Internet. The data for the study were collected in 2003 (evidently the government has no graduate students anxious to graduate working on the data they collect).

A few findings that I consider important:

1) Students use computers and the Internet to complete school assignments at school and at home (unfortunately, details are lacking).

2) There are significant “digital divide” issues in what students do with technology outside of schools.

3) In school access to technology could be described as addressing differences in access that exist outside of school.

4) There were no sex differences in overall levels of use.

NCES seems committed to a longitudinal approach allowing them to track trends. In general, this is a useful strategy and only practical for organizations able to commit considerable resources to a topic. My concern with the existing approach is that it limits the opportunity to focus the resources behind the research on new issues. Given concerns related to how much (not whether) students use computers and the educational tasks students use technology to accomplish, I wish the protocol would be modified or refocused to consider some new topics.

I happen to be reading a related article today from the EDUCAUSE REVIEW that also concerned digital divide issues. The review article was citing data from 2004 on “access.” I did not read the source to determine when the data were actually collected. Access and how we define access changes so quickly. I remember a few years ago when the metric was whether or not a school had a connection. At some point, these data were meaningless for purposes of comparison because the trend line had reached a point at which little growth was possible. In contrast, a more recent point of comparison was the percentage of classrooms with at least 4 computers with an Internet connection. When defined in this fashion, some variability was evident.

The research process can be slow. However, these are not complex methodologies and the statistics are elementary. The review process would seem less time consuming than one might expect from a high end research journal. These are data suited to policy decisions more so than fine-grained theoretical arguments. This would seem to be a situation in which the target is moving faster than data can be collected to fix its location.

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The Cuban Interview

EdTechLive provides the audio of interviews with prominent individuals in the field. A recent addition is a session with Larry Cuban (author of Oversold and Underused – the PDF of which is also available from the site) and this conversation has generated some buzz in the blogs I follow. For those who have followed some of the core issues, most of the arguments in the interview are pretty much a rehash of themes from previous publications. Cuban’s 2001 book investigated a wide variety of issues concerning the use of technology in schools. Two of the major themes are apparent from the title – schools are pressued to purchase technology and the amount of time students spend using technology is very limited. The lack of reliable evidence that technology has a meaningful impact on achievement, limited opportunities for students to use the resources that are purchased, and the cost of the purchases are blended into a rather pessimistic picture. While pessimistic, this book and a journal article (much shorter – American Educational Research Journal, 38(4), 813–834) should be read by those interested in this field. The interview provides a nice overview and may generate in some the motivation necessary to locate the book in the library or online.

Some of these same issues have been raised again by the recent Wall Street Journal article criticizing 1:1 laptop initiatives (accessible without cost from other services). This topic comes up in the interview.

Addressing and interpreting all of the concerns raised in the Cuban documents would require another book. Many of the observations (e.g., students spend little time with technology, teachers with adequate personal technology skills fail to avail their students of the same tool opportunities) have been made by others and the causes and related recommendations vary. The issue of “proof” in education is troublesome to all of us attempting to make good decisions about the field and also attempting to keep our personal interests from clouding the practices we advocate.

I would suggest that a careful reading of the research literature would bring into question several “costly” and time consuming educational practices (one of which Dr. Cuban seemed to mention in a positive way in this interview – general liberal arts education). One of may favorite examples (perhaps because of my personal academic training) is the science laboratory. The cost of laboratory experiences in introductory chemistry is extremely expensive (partly because the safety requirements that are imposed) and the demonstrated contribution to the understanding of the content taught in such courses would be hard to justify based on the literature I have read. I think some of the same factors that Cuban mentions in his book apply to the way we think about science laboratories. Instead of pressures exerted by parents to involve their children with computers and the promotions of companies interested in selling technology to schools, pressure comes from other directions. The assumptions regarding what constitutes sound scientific training promoted by organizations such as the NSF and the politics asssuming that general math and science preparation are somehow essential to international competitiveness prompt schools to spend money in certain ways. I am not against spending the money – my point is that finding costly academic ventures that lack a strong empirical basis is not that difficult.

Listen to the interview, parse the various arguments, and determine for yourself how you would interpret many of the observations that are provided.

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Reflecting on Reflecting

This comment comes to you from the food court of the Fargo mall and is written as an opportunity to escape from boredom. I tell you this in keeping with the tradition of other bloggers who constantly inform readers of the exotic places they visit and the exciting things they do.

My institution requires that each year each faculty member submit multiple indicators of accomplishments in the areas of teaching, research, and service. That part I understand. However, somehow the mix of annual indicators now includes a personal reflective statement on these same areas of academic responsibility. I whole heartedly believe that faculty members should examine their beliefs and priorities. However, after nearly 30 years of being involved in my profession, I find it difficult a) to come up with something that sounds both profound and original each year and b) to ignore the reality that I am writing something for administrators to review while I am also supposedly identifying weaknesses I am trying to address.

Anyway, knowing myself (isn’t that the point of reflection), I realized that I needed to arrange circumstances so I might enjoy this task. Perhaps I should just think of the task as one giant blog entry. I considered this for a little while and then decided that with blog entries I operate under the illusion that someone reads what I write and I was not certain I could force myself into the same illusion regarding the personal statement. I finally hit on another possible source of motivation. I pride myself on having first or second-hand experience with the technologies I recommend. The rule is there must either be exposure to applications through teachers I or my wife knows or we must create for ourselves the opportunity to use a tool or technique for a reasonable amount of time.

So – we drove to Fargo. Cindy will look for quality goods at unsually low prices. Typically, I make this trip for the pleasure of spending time in Barnes and Noble drinking coffee, reading, and writing. However, I realized that the Fargo Barnes and Noble has no Internet access. I need Internet access for this project. The food court in the mall has Internet access. So here I am in the mall reflecting on my scholarship using Writely. Here I am both reflecting and exploring the features of Writely.

I see Writely has options for public documents and for blogging. Perhaps it is best in this case that I keep the product private.

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An Email from Todd – On Net Neutrality

I received the following email in response to my latest post on net neutrality. It came from my son – truthfully I had no idea that he read my blog and I was impressed that he wanted me to know what he thinks about the topic. Since he did not write his comments for public consumption, I asked permission to share what he had to say.

Hi Dad,

I just read your blog post on net neutrality (very well written). Anyways, I just wanted to share with you a couple of thoughts I have on the subject. During the editing of the film I am currently working on, I have listened to hours of interviews with people from all over the world. One of the questions always asked in these interviews is “where do you get your news and information from? Three times out of four the answer is “the internet”. I have footage of people waiting in line outside an internet cafe in Kabul, Afghanistan. They are there to read the news and communicate with people all around the world. A lot of these people don’t even have electricity in their homes, yet they depend on the internet for information. I feel that the difference between the haves, and have nots in todays society is not currency but access to information. For corporate interests to have control of this information, be it by censorship or by making it financially unattainable, would be disastrous. The ability for all people to be able to create and consume content without financial, ethical, or political pressures is key to the future of the world. I don’t think that is an exaggeration. We are quickly becoming a global community and there is no turning back now. It is paramount that everyone remain in the loop.

A little background – Todd works on documentary films. In the project he describes he is one of the Final Cut Pro editors putting together a piece on what people around the world think of the United States.

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Net Neutrality

Senators Dorgan (North Dakota) and Snowe (Maine) had an editorial in today’s local paper concerning net neutrality (GF Herald – you may have to complete a free registration). I assume this editorial ran in many other papers as well. If I remember the details correctly, these Senators offered an amendment to assure net neutrality that was rejected. Net Neutrality basically concerns the issue of whether the company that “owns the pipe” has a right to control what content moves through that pipe. (Note – I use the term “pipe” here so I can cross reference my comments with the comments offered by Senator Stevens.). Others see this issue a little differently. The position of the providers has been presented based on the right of such companies to make a profit because these companies provide access (see comment taken from the editorial):

““They don’t have any fiber out there. They don’t have any wires. They don’t have anything. . . . They use my lines for free – and that’s bull. For a Google or a Yahoo or a Vonage or anybody to expect to use these pipes for free is nuts!”, the CEO of one the nation’s biggest network operators told Business Week magazine in November.”

Please consider this position carefully. I am guessing as an Internet user you realize you do not have free access to the Internet or if you do such access is paid for by the school or library providing you access. If you have home access, you may also realize that operating a server will require that you pay a fee above what you are presently paying to download information and using low volume upload services such as email. If you doubt this, try activating a server from home and you will likely immediately discover (at least I have from performing the test) that your service provider will expect a higher payment to allow such an activity. The same is true of Yahoo and Google (contrary to the implication of the statement I have quoted) and on a scale that is based on bandwidth. These companies do not pay for access based on the money they make, but on the bandwidth they use. It is a falsehood to claim there is no cost to Google to offer their services and make the money they make (on ads).

The net neutrality “issue” is really about the opportunity to control what content moves through Internet pathways. For companies offering multiple services (e.g., cable movies, voice communication), net neutrality reacts to the concern that providers will use the opportunity to control what content moves through the fiber they control to prevent users from accessing Internet services (e.g., online video, VOIP) that conflict with other money making opportunities of the provider. It is obviously in the interest of a phone company to block or slow VOIP services across a DSL line. This has nothing to do with making money when Google or Yahoo makes money.

The worst problems with the present situation will occur in locations where options are not available (I assume Maine and North Dakota would make good examples). If I live in North Dakota and have access to a cable system, I may be able to use VOIP, but I might find video downloads (perhaps distance education content) may move so slowly or not at all. It will not be that my provider objects to my learning online – but rather that the provider may confuse educational video with entertainment video.

Providers certainly have a right to make money for the service they provide. However, the service they provide is access to content/services. This is not the same as access to content/services as long as such content/services do not represent competition for other business ventures of the provider.

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Podcasting Lectures – The Dilemma

SlashDot includes a post today that is concerned with the issue of podcasting lectures and the potential problem of absenteeism.

I had a personal reaction to the post that would likely be different from the reaction of many. I follow and contribute to a small literature on the positive and negative consequences of offering students online representations of lecture content (e.g., notes, audio). In this case, the “hard copy” literature associated with this issue probably predates and is more robust than the online discussion.

For example, a good deal of the “hard copy” consideration of making lecture resources available to students is grounded in an old literature that examines student limitations in note taking. The cognitive demands of taking notes may reduce the “processing of lecture content” AND “generate a poor account of the lecture” to review later. Alternative representations of a lecture (whether outlines, PowerPoint images offered to students, or podcasts) offer benefits by addressing such limitations OR by providing an alternative for students who missed class for “acceptable” reasons.

The SlashDot analysis mainly offers advice on mechanisms for assuring that students will still come to class and can access a podcost (e.g., a password distributed in class).

BTW – my research seems to indicate that students prefer “complete notes” (taken by a skilled note taker) to an online audio “transcript” of the lecture. This makes sense to me. A good set of notes can be read quickly and easily scanned for problem areas. In addition, online notes have been “preprocessed” by an “expert” student.

I do encourage you to read the comments associated with the SlashDot post.

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Engelbart’s HyperScope

Those familiar with the history of hypermedia should recognize the name Douglas Engelbart. Engelbart is credited with creating the mouse and was an early advocate of hypermedia (actually hypertext). Recent interest in collaborative online authoring seems very similar to Engelbart’s original ideas. The National Science Foundation is sponsor of a project to apply some of Engelbart’s original ideas and this project has resulted in the recent release of HyperScope.

Read/Write web blog description of HyperScope project.

Early mention of Engelbart in this blog.

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