Technology in the Classroom survey results Jill Elston Insightful Marketing September 2013
Summary
Executive summary (1 of 2) Technology in the classroom is used significantly and to a great extent by almost all respondents, although there are still technological challenges – some of them very basic – to overcome in many schools. Teachers are now confident in dealing with technology in the classroom. Over half of schools have a written technology / e-learning strategy There is a wide variation in the budget allocation to IT/technology. 52% of schools spend less than 20% of their budget on IT. 18% of schools spend more than 50% of their budget. The more a school currently spends, the more likely they are to see that spend increasing in the next five years. An overwhelming majority of students have access to the internet at home. Schools in Africa were more likely to report lower numbers of students having access. ‘Old’ technology such as television/radio/CD player seems to be falling out of favour and being replaced by PC/Laptops. Newer technologies such as smartphones and tablets are yet to be used significantly. Internet /web-based software is most popular for both teaching and learning. 63% of respondents say that students are allowed to bring their own technology into the classroom. Those who do now allow it are mostly afraid of misuse, distraction and being liable for loss/damage of student property. Anecdotally, a small number of schools appear to be shifting opinion and making it easier for students to use their own technology.
Executive summary (1 of 2) Technology in the classroom is mostly used for lesson planning, creating resources and whole class activities. Teachers agree with the benefits of technology for students, particularly that it helps to develop realworld skills. Teachers think the main benefit of technology for them is access to a wealth of content. Technical issues and managing students’ use of technology are the greatest challenges. 87% think that all lessons will be supported by some form of technology in 10 years’ time. A third think that technology will make physical classrooms obsolete in 10 years’ time. The ability to connect classrooms around the world was the most appealing technological solution for teachers.
In total, 519 responses were received.
School context There are some regional variations, with schools in India/Pakistan, Middle East and Europe more likely to be further ahead in technology.
Over half of schools have a written technology or e-learning strategy. A
less than 20% of their budget on IT.
quarter still do not.
18% of schools spend
52% of schools spend
more than half of their budget of IT.
Schools who already spend over 50% are more likely to increase their budget. Those schools who expected the budget to remain the same or decrease were more likely to have only a small proportion of their budget allocated to IT in the first place.
Does your school have a written strategy or improvement plan for using technology and/or e-learning?
12%
63% of respondents said their school has a written strategy or improvement plan. However, the results are slightly skewed and over-inflated by multiple answers coming from the same school. It is impossible to calculate the exact percentage based on the data available, but I believe a more accurate representation would be that 55-57% of schools have a written strategy.
Don't know 25%
No Yes
63%
Approximately what percentage of your overall school budget is spent on IT equipment, software, connectivity and support?
80
49% of respondents did not know how the school budget was spent.
70 60 50 40 30 20 10 0 0 - 10%
11- 20%
21 - 30%
31 - 40%
Over 50%
Data excludes ‘don’t know’ answers
Over the next five years do you expect this budget to increase, decrease or stay the same?
4% 17%
This breakdown remains the same even if we remove those who answered ‘do not know’ from the previous question.
decrease? increase? stay the same?
79%
Regional variations If we take the profile of a school which is advanced in using technology in the classroom as: Having a written technology statement Spending more than one third of their budget on IT Having confident or very confident teachers Allowing students to use their own technology 31 schools fit this profile. There are some regional variations in the results. India and Pakistan make up 32% of these schools (but only 13% of the overall responses) Middle East makes up 16% of these schools (but only 5% of the overall responses) Europe (excl. UK) makes up 10% of these schools (but only 3% of the overall responses)
Home context Results show an overwhelming majority of students have access to the internet at home.
61% of respondents
19% of respondents
Schools in Africa
said that between 91100% of their students have internet at home.
said that between 8190% of their students have internet at home.
were more likely to report that less than 50% of their students had internet access at home, accounting for 13 out of the 22 responses.
What percentage of your students do you estimate have access to the internet at home? 350 300 250 200 150 100 50
Don't know
91 - 100%
81 - 90%
71 - 80%
61- 70%
51 - 60%
41- 50%
31 - 40%
21 - 30%
11 - 20%
0 - 10%
0
Teacher confidence Results show high levels of teacher confidence with technology.
96% of respondents felt
44% reported feeling
‘very confident’ or ‘confident’ about using technology in the classroom.
‘very confident’.
Training and practical experience were most likely to give teachers extra confidence.
How confident are you in using technology in the classroom?
There was no discernible pattern to those teachers who felt less confident. Except that 4 out of the 21 who reported feeling ‘not very confident’ all came from the same school in Zimbabwe, possibly suggesting a localised issue in one school.
Confident
44%
Not confident at all 52%
Not very confident Very confident
4% 0%
What would give you more confidence using technology in the classroom? 14 comments were received. 6 comments focussed on training / education issues
Having more small workshop training on the things I need for my department. Singapore
2 comments focussed on the need for practical experience / practice 3 comments focussed on lack of technology or connectivity issues User manuals, training and better support (when things break down etc.). Malaysia
Time to develop strategies, assistance in developing strategies and technology that is reliable. Turkey
Hardware for teaching ‘Old’ and cutting edge technology were least likely to be used.
Projector/IWB and PC or laptop are most
Television, radio and CD/DVD are
The newest technologies such as
likely to be used in all lessons.
amongst the least likely to be used in lessons. MP3 players are also not used much and from some comments it seems clear that a lot of teachers rely on PC/laptops to provide their Audio Visual material.
electronic readers and smartphones still have relatively low uptake compared to other hardware. Comments tended to focus on very subject specific pieces of technology.
How often do you use the following hardware in your classroom for teaching?
350 300 250 200 150 In most lessons 100
Occasionally Never
50 0
Other hardware used (number of mentions in brackets) Audio / Video via a PC (6) Visualiser (5) Apple TV (4) Data loggers (4) Calculators (2) Scanner (4) CNC machines, e.g. lathe, laser cutters (3) Voting pads (2) Music technology / instruments (2) OHP (2) Digital microscope Heart rate monitors / GPS activity trackers / stopwatches Language lab Plasma screens
Software for teaching Internet / web-based software shows the greatest popularity amongst teachers.
Videoconferencing, social networks and apps are least likely to be used by teachers in the classroom.
A majority of Website based material teachers use software is most popular. on an occasional basis, rather than using it in every lesson.
How often do you use the following software/services in your classroom for teaching?
350 300 250 200 150 100
In most lessons Occasionally
50 0
Never
Other software used (number of mentions in brackets) 2D & 3D CAD software (2) Moodle (2) Own developed software (2) Blogs / School wiki Clarity Works (ESOL resource) Google doc/sites Movement analysis software / blood gas analysis software Mathematical graphing software
Hardware for students Trends for hardware for student access look broadly similar to the hardware used by teachers in class, with a couple of exceptions.
Students are less likely than teachers
Students are more likely than teachers
to have access to a PC or laptop in the classroom.
to have access to a smartphone or iPad/tablet in the classroom.
Which hardware do your students have access to in your classroom (either individually or in groups)? 350 300 250 200 150 In most lessons 100 50
Occasionally Never
0
In additional comments, 1 teacher mentioned calculators; 1 said most students had their own smartphone; 2 teachers said the equipment was not always in the classroom but could be accessed via a separate lab or ordered in for a specific lesson.
Software for students Internet and web-based software is most likely to be accessed by students in the classroom.
Generic software is more likely to be accessed by students than teachers in the classroom.
Websites for teachers are less likely to be accessed by students in the classroom than by teachers.
All other software follows a very similar pattern to how it is accessed by teachers.
Which of the following software/services do your students have access to in your classroom (either individually or in groups)? 300 250 200 150 100 50 0
In most lessons Occasionally Never
Other software used Clarity works Google docs/sites Moodle Mymaths online subscription
Regulations on student technology A majority of students are allowed to bring their own technology in the classroom, with other schools set to change policy. But comments show real reservations about students accessing their own technology from some teachers.
63% of respondents
School rules/policy
said that students are allowed to bring their own technology into the classroom.
was most frequently cited as the reason why students could not bring their own technology.
Concerns about liability and distractions in class were the main reasons given for forbidding technology.
Are students allowed to bring their own technology for use in your classroom?
37%
Of the 37% who do not allow technology a small number indicated that the policy was under review, or likely to change, suggesting an attitude shift may be underway in some schools.
No Yes
63%
Reasons for not allowing technology 133 comments received 31 cited school rules / policy Where further explanation was given, the most common reasons were: Believed to be a distraction / used for non-educational purposes (37) Security / school don’t want liability if things are lost/broken (14) Not necessary / school provides everything (13) Would lead to inequalities if not all students have them (9) Safeguarding / worried about what students can access (8) Technological reasons (6) Too young (3) Interestingly, 7 respondents commented that the school policy was about to change or changing the policy was being considered. A couple of respondents also highlighted their own personal disagreement with school policy, suggesting that there may be a slow shift towards allowing technology. However, there were still very many negative comments regarding the potential for distraction / misuse.
Comments on why students are not allowed technology in the classroom. Students are distracted by these devices. They update and browse facebook and other social networks during class time instead of focusing on the lesson. Thefts of these devices became a problem in the school. Some students attempted to use their devices to cheat during exams by 'googling' answers during exams. Other students would wear their headphones and listen to music during classes instead of listening to the teacher. For these reasons we have forbidden students to bring these devices to school. Botswana
Because of distractions in the classroom. It does not allow for uniformity of learning outcomes for students. Students are not equally endowed financially so it may cause bad feelings amongst disadvantaged students. Nigeria
The cost of internet in the Islands is too high, so we have to be very strict about its use. Also we have had issues with bullying using mobile phones and finally personal MP3 players are viewed as a high risk in the event of fire and students not hearing firealarms. Falkland Islands
We cant trust them, some students will use it for having fun instead of learning the related subjects. Indonesia
Because if they bring electronic devices to school and something happens to them i.e. they break, lose them, gets stolen, etc. it's a problem for the school - although we always say that the school cannot be held responsible for valuables brought to school, parents don't see it that way! Uruguay
The computer lab in school is well equipped and available for all students. To avoid accessing other sites and misuse of internet, we do not allow students to use their own gadgets. With permission they may use , for presentations. They can access net only through a password given to them by school and many social sites are protected by Firewall and hence it is easy to have control. India
Use of technology in the classroom Technology is well-used by a majority of teachers for all of the activities listed in the question.
Lesson planning, creating resources & whole class teaching were the most frequent activities undertaken.
All respondents use technology for at least one of the areas listed.
Supporting students with special educational needs was the least cited area of use.
presentations.
‘Other’ comments were: communicating with other teachers and students, calculators, music/video recording, Other
Communicating with parents
Supporting students with special educational needs
Monitoring attendance and behaviour
Monitoring and analysing pupil progress
Recording information about students
Assessment
Collaborative learning activities
Individual learning activities
Whole class teaching activities
Creating & organising your own digital resources
Lesson planning
How do you use technology in your classroom? 600
500
400
300
200
100
0
Benefits of technology for students The majority of teachers agreed with all the benefits listed.
‘Helping students develop real world skills’ was seen as the strongest benefit.
Teachers were IT, research and least likely to agree communication that technology helped skills are seen as the to provide confident, engaged and motivated students.
skills students are most likely to develop by using technology.
Student benefits: how far do you agree with the following statements about the benefits of technology for students 350
300
250
200 Strongly agree Agree
150
Neither agree nor disagree Disagree
100
Strongly disagree 50
0 helps to develop is consistent with provides creates more enables students skills that students how students opportunities for confident, to access a wealth need in the real gather information them to put their engaged and of additional world and communicate learning into motivated students content outside of the practice classroom
Other student benefits Classroom reflects the outside world Necessary for IB syllabus Saves students time (4) Prepares students for modern world (3) Good for revision and research Motivates students Gives real world experience for languages / CAD Increased interactivity of lessons Able to communicate with students outside classtime via social media etc.
What are the key skills that students develop through using technology in the classroom?
600
500
400
300
200
100
0 IT skills
Problem solving Collaboration
Research
Creativity
Communication
Analysis
Evaluation
Benefits of technology for teachers The vast majority of teachers agreed with all the benefits listed.
‘Accessing a wealth of content’ was seen as the strongest benefit.
Teachers were More resources and least likely to agree more engaged that technology helped students were other build their confidence.
benefits most frequently mentioned.
Benefits for teaching: how far do you agree with the following statements 350
300
250
200 Strongly agree Agree
150
Neither agree nor disagree Disagree 100
Strongly disagree
50
0 helps develop my own skills in using different technologies in my teaching
helps to build my confidence in using different technologies
encourages me to keep searching for innovative learning solutions
allows me to create more variety in my lessons
enables me to access a wealth of additional content
Other teaching benefits Better organisation / saving of resources (4) More interesting lessons (2) Easier to adapt to different student needs Makes presentation of material quicker Share ideas with teachers around the world (2) Students are more engaged (4)
Challenges Technical issues and managing students are seen as the greatest challenges.
81% of respondents see
76% of respondents
technical issues as a major challenge.
find it difficult to prevent students going off on a tangent. Comments reinforce that students are distracted by social media.
In some countries this is as basic as reliable electricity & internet access.
Less than half of teachers find keeping up with technology a challenge, reinforcing the feeling of confidence with technology that was reported in an earlier question.
What are the challenges or barriers to using technology in the classroom? 450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Providing access for Making sure my all students technical skills match those of my students
Keeping abreast of new technologies
Preventing students going off on a tangent and accessing irrelevant/inaccurate or too much content
Technical issues
Managing access to inappropriate material
Comments on challenges Problems with internet connection (12) Students too easily distracted – especially by social networking (9) Funding for hardware (6) Students know more about technology than the teachers (4) Electricity sometimes off (3) Lack of IT support (3) Lack of time to prepare (3) Problems with access to hardware Difficulty in evaluating impact on technology on teaching / what is most effective (2) Students can become too reliant on technology
The future The majority of teachers agree with many of the future scenarios put forward, although only 1/3 think technology will render physical classrooms obsolete.
87% of respondents
One third of
80% would like to see
think all lessons will be supported by some form of technology in 10 years’ time.
respondents think students will be learning in virtual classrooms in 10 years’ time.
technology helping to link classrooms around the world.
Technology will make the physical classroom obsolete, students will be learning in virtual classrooms
All teaching/learning resources, including books, will be online
It will be compulsory for schools around the world to teach their students computer/digital skills
All communication (except school events/parents' evenings etc) between the school and students/parents outside the classroom will be digital
Every student will have a computer on their desk or laptop/tablet for their personal use in classroom
All students' work will be completed and handed in electronically
All assessment, where applicable, will be carried out electronically
All lesson will be supported by some form of technology
Thinking about the future, where do you think technology in the classroom will be in 10 years’ time? 500
450
400
350
300
250
200
150
100
50
0
In an ideal world, which of the following technological solutions would you like to see developed?
450 400 350 300 250 200 150 100 50 0 Interactive online lessons delivered in real-tim by the world's brightest minds in the field
An app to automatically mark students' work
An app to filter the internet and 'turn off' irrelevant sections
An app which alerts The ability to link with me when pupils are other classrooms using their tablet to around the world, look up some share information and inappropriate material best practice
Other
Dream classroom technological solution Examinations completed with full access to the internet Virtual science app for students with special needs to carry out experiments Industry standard software made freely available to schools
Examinations completed with full access to the internet. The time limits are the key differentiator to success and failure, not recall of facts. Education systems (especially teaching in Mathematics) should move away from fact recall/process recall and move towards understanding and application. If necessary, the marking of the exams can be carried out with a transcript of the candidate's online search activity. In nowhere except for the artificial environment of the exam is there not access to perfect information.
International student collaboration 1.An app to alert me when a new video or virtual lesson is available for topics of my interest. 2.A virtual science tool for students of special needs to be able to carry out school relevant science experiments.
Interactive desktops that allow the teacher to tap into any student's device (during classroom lesson time) and interact with the student either individually or in groups.
Demographics
Responses by region (number & %)
140
USA 2%
120 UK 15%
100
Africa 22%
80 60
S. America 12%
40 20 0
Middle East 5%
Asia 18% India/Pakist an 13%
Europe excl. UK 10%
Australia/N Caribbean Z 3% 0%
Detailed breakdown of responses (1 of 2) Europe: 131 individuals, 73 schools Africa: 114 individuals, 48 schools
Asia: 91 individuals, 51 schools
Albania (2)
-
Botswana (8)
4 schools
China (7)
7 schools
Belgium (2)
2 schools
Ethiopia (1)
1 school
Hong Kong (7)
4 schools
Cyprus (3)
2 schools
Gambia (1)
1 school
Indonesia (26)
14 schools
Czech Rep (2)
2 schools
Ghana (3)
3 schools
Japan (2)
2 schools
Denmark (1)
1 school
Kenya (3)
3 schools
Korea (1)
1 school
France (1)
1 school
Lesotho (1)
1 school
Malaysia (30)
12 schools
Germany (3)
3 schools
Malawi (1)
1 school
Philippines (4)
3 schools
Greece (2)
2 schools
Mauritius (3)
3 schools
Singapore (9)
4 schools
Italy (7)
7 schools
Mozambique (1)
1 school
Thailand (4)
3 schools
Macedonia (1)
1 school
Namibia (1)
1 school
Vietnam (1)
1 school
Malta (1)
1 school
Nigeria (5)
5 schools
Monaco (1)
1 school
Sierra Leone (1)
1 school
Netherlands (8)
3 schools
South Africa (13)
9 schools
Serbia (1)
1 school
Sudan (51)
Slovakia (1)
1 school
Spain (6)
2 schools
Sweden (2)
2 schools
Switzerland (1)
1 school
Turkey (7)
2 schools
UK (79)
38 schools
Aus/NZ: 13 individuals, 5 schools Australia (1)
1 school 4 schools
1 school
New Zealand (12)
Tanzania (2)
2 schools
Caribbean: 3 individuals, 3 schools
Uganda (4)
4 schools
Jamaica (2)
2 schools
Zimbabwe (15)
7 schools
Bermuda (1)
1 school
Detailed breakdown of responses (2 of 2) India/Pakistan: 66 individuals, 43 schools
S. America: 61 individuals, 30 schools
India (57)
36 schools
Argentina (54)
25 schools
Pakistan (9)
7 schools
Colombia (1)
1 school
Falkland Islands (1)
1 school
Mexico (3)
1 school
Uruguay (2)
2 schools
Middle East: 24 individuals, 21 schools Bahrain (2)
1 school
Brunei (1)
1 school
Egypt (1)
1 school
Israel (1)
1 school
Jordan (6)
5 schools
Kuwait (1)
1 school
Oman (3)
3 schools
Qatar (2)
2 schools
UAE (6)
5 schools
Yemen (1)
1 school
USA: 8 individuals, 6 schools USA (8)
6 schools
NB Not all respondents stated a school name; school numbers are based on available information which may be incomplete.
0 Albania Argentina Australia Bahrain Belgium Bermuda Botswana Brunei Darussalam China Colombia Cyprus Czech Republic Denmark Egypt Ethiopia Falkland Islands France Gambia Germany Ghana Greece Hong Kong India Indonesia Israel Italy Jamaica Japan Jordan Kenya Korea, Republic of Kuwait Lesotho Macedonia Malawi Malaysia Malta Mauritius Mexico Monaco Mozambique Namibia Netherlands New Zealand Nigeria Oman Other Pakistan Philippines Qatar Serbia And Montenegro Sierra Leone Singapore Slovakia South Africa Spain Sudan Sweden Switzerland Tanzania Thailand Trinidad & Tobago Turkey Uganda UK United Arab Emirates United States Of America Uruguay Vietnam Yemen Arab Republic Zimbabwe (blank)
Country in which respondents teach
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
School location
1%
24%
in a city? in a rural area? in a town? 7%
other 68%
Respondent role 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Academic counsellor
Director of studies
Exams officer
Head of department
Head of sixth form
Other
Principal / Subject teacher Deputy Principal
Cambridge programmes taught NB Because this question was added late to the survey, only 214 out of the 519 respondents answered the question.
200 180 160 140 120 100 80 60 40 20 0 Cambridge Primary
Cambridge Secondary 1
Cambridge Secondary 2
Cambridge Advanced
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