Via David Warlick at http://davidwarlick.com/2cents/2006/09/18/listening-to-student-voices/:
Ian Jukes, just sent me a link to a study that was published last year by Education|Evolving, a joint venture between the Center for Policy Studies and Hamline University in Minnesota. The report, Listening to Student Voices — on Technology (pdf), describes 15 findings, culled from various literature. The findings are mostly not surprising, but worth noting again:
- Computer and internet use is growing
- Students are sophisticated users
- Technology is important to students in education
- Technology is not an extra
- In-school access to technology is limited
- Home use dominates
- In-school use is not integrated
- Computers and the Internet are communications tools, first
- Metaphors describe how students use the Internet for school: The Internet as:virtual guidance counselor, virtual textbook and reference library, virtual tutor, study short-cut, study group, virtual locker, backpack, and notebook
- Technology has caused students to approach life differently; but adults act as though nothing has changed
- Students desire increased in-school access
- Students want to use technology to learn, and in a variety of ways
- Students want challenging, technologically-oriented instructional activities
- Students want adults to move beyond using the ‘Internet for Internet’s sake’
- Students want to learn the basics, too
My favorite? Technology has caused students to approach life differently; but adults act as though nothing has changed
Great stuff for planning library services and working with teens. If you don’t subscribe to David’s blog, you may want to add it to your aggregator for his unique insights into education, 2.0 and students.