Overview
The students in Kindergarten this year will graduate in 2020. Although in some schools in some districts in some states, students are receiving an education that can be identified as meeting the needs of the 21st century, America is far from maximizing its potential.
- The Department of Labor reports that out of 55 industries, education is last in its use of technology (Department of Commerce 2003).
- In the majority of schools, teachers and students cannot maximize the potential of technology (Ed Week 2006).
- By 2010, if current trends continue, more than 90 percent of all scientists and engineers will be living in Asia (Business Roundtable).
- Since the 1960s, the demand for skills has changed significantly – the demand for routine manual task skills have decreased, while the demand for non-routine interactive task skills have increased significantly (OECD 2007).
- Approximately 1.23 million students fail to graduate from high school each year (Alliance for Excellent Education 2007).
- Forty-seven percent of students surveyed stated that a major reason for dropping out of school was that classes were not interesting (Gates Foundation 2006).
To ensure that our children are prepared to lead our country in the 21st century, we must provide the technology tools and resources necessary to engage students and transform education. Technology plays a critical role in students’ everyday social lives and must be a part of their academic lives, as well.
While technology can successfully engage students, student engagement is a complex issue that should also consider other factors beyond technology, such as the students’ relationship with the school community and students’ ownership for their education, including self-direction and accountability.
When utilizing technology tools and resources to increase student engagement, we must rely on technology solutions that are scalable, flexible, reliable, and have the ability to cost-effectively engage ALL students.
The next sections of this tool explore the following topics:
Students Use of Technology in their Everyday Lives
A Vision of K-12 Students Today Video
Students use technology in their everyday lives and it is important to understand how they are using technology and to listen to the views of students when discussing how to increase student engagement.
Speak Up is an annual national research project that collects views from students, parents, and educators on K-12 education topics including technology, science, math and 21st century workforce skills. Some of the views of students reported in Speak Up 2006 and 2007 are listed below.
Speak Up 2007 National Findings:
- Student access to mobile devices has exploded in the past year, especially in terms of MP3, smart phones (SP) or personal digital assistants (PDA). Growth from 2006 to 2007 for K-2 students having MP3 players was 84% and 58% for students in grades 3-5. The number of middle and high school students with smart phones increased by over 44% from 2006.
- Students in grades 3-12 (including 74% of high school students) consistently identify good tech skills as the #1 skill they need to be successful in the 21st century.
- Social networking - 40% of middle school students and 67% of high school students have a personal websites (Facebook, MySpace, Xanga) and the most popular activity on those websites is emailing with friends.
- Over 50% of all high school students use email, IM, text messaging regularly.
- For school work, students in grades 6-12 are using technology for these top 5 activities in 2007:
Writing assignments (74%) Online research (72%) Checking assignments or grades online (58%) Creating slideshows, videos, webpages for schoolwork (57%) Email or IM with classmates about assignments (44%)
Speak Up 2006 National Findings:
- For K-12 students, the top technology devices are: computers, cell phones and video game players.
- For students in grades 3-12, use of digital cameras, MP3 players and laptop computers all increased dramatically in past two years.
- Students in grades K-2 increased the weekly use of desktop computers by 28% since last year.
- Students’ schoolwork use of technology includes Internet research, creating presentations and movies, and practicing skills by playing educational games.
- Students’ non-schoolwork use of technology includes gaming, email, IM and personal websites.
- Students are increasingly using online tools to connect with other students around the country and around the globe.
- 54% of middle school students have online friends that are from other schools, other states or other countries.
- If students could change how technology is implemented at their school, they would:
- Relax school rules about email, IM, cell phone and online use.
- Access to laptops to use at school and home.
In 2007, the National School Boards Association (NSBA) conducted surveys of parents, teachers, and school district leaders on online social and educational networking.
- Nine to 17-year olds report spending almost as much time using the Internet and social networking activities as they do watching television – about 9 hours per week.
- 96% of students with online access report using social networking technologies.
- Almost 60% of students report using social networking to talk about education.
Fifty-five percent of all of online American youths ages 12-17 use online social networking sites (Pew Internet & American Life Project 2007).
- In the 21st century learning environment, allowing for the traditional classroom and beyond, student engagement is defined by demonstrating self-direction and accountability involving immersion, passion, enthusiastic individualization and exploration, and an investment in the individual learning process.
- Students’ sense of ownership for their education – autonomous, self-direction, differentiated, student-directed assessments.
- Students’ relationship with the school community, the structures, the curriculum and content, the pedagogy, and the opportunities (Yazzie-Mintz 2006).
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According to the research, a lack of student engagement is a predictor for dropping out of school even after controlling for student background and academic achievement (Rumberger 2004). Research shows that engaged students learn more, retain more, and enjoy learning more than students who are not engaged (Dowson & McInerney 2001; Hancock & Betts 2002; Lumsden 1994; Voke 2002). The Schlechty Center for Leadership in School Reform asserts that students who are engaged:
- Learn at high levels and have a profound grasp of what they learn
- Retain what they learn
- Can transfer what they learn to new contexts
Yet, according to recent student surveys, fifty percent of students reported being bored in at least one high school class every day. Seventy-five percent of students stated that they were bored because the material was not interesting (Yazzie-Mintz 2006). In another recent student survey, the perception that school is boring was cited as one of the reasons kids drop out of school (Bridgeland, Dilulio, Morison 2006).
A review of the academic research on the subject of student engagement shows that technology can help teachers engage students.
- In order to engage more students, teachers should provide a mixture of learning strategies and resources, including technology (Zorfass & Copel 1995).
- Using virtual reality produced highly engaged, self-directed students, whether in a constructivist or traditional classroom setting (Osberg 1997).
- Technology-enhanced, project-based student work is a staple of quality knowledge work (Schlechty 2001).
- Computers and software are the tools students use to create their own learning environment (Ashton, Bland, & Rogers 2001; Milken 1999).
With consistent, continuous professional development teachers can use technology in the classroom to help engage students. Students can learn in a technology environment that mimics their everyday lives.
