One-to-One Technology in K–12 Classrooms

Many districts and schools have found technology to be an area of needed focus.  They have found, with research evidence, that students can benefit from 1:1 devices.  This can positively impact student achievement, classroom learning experiences, differentiated instruction, and engagement and motivation.  Although there are many benefits to this added focus on technology, there can also be some challenges that districts and schools can face.

A huge finding in the study was that students who used the devices more out of the classroom had a significant impact on their math achievement.   There was also better performance for students that were in a 1:1 program as opposed to a 1:5 program. Although screen size was not a significant difference, bigger screens helped keep the students engaged for longer.  These achievements were also across content areas, not just for math, although some state the contrary.

When students with devices, as opposed to students without devices, studies found that the classroom environment was run differently.  Students were encouraged to work in small groups and utilize more collaboration on activities and they communicated more effectively. They found the students felt a sense of accomplishment and showed more leadership skills.  This shows that not only were there positive quantitative results, there were also positive qualitative results for students with 1:1 devices. Not only did teachers run their classrooms differently, they were also found to implement research-based lessons and differentiate for their students. Students had more creative responses and a higher level of motivation and engagement in these lessons.

Although there are so many positive findings in research with 1:1 programs, they also found that there were some challenges.  While some teachers are eager to utilize technology in their classrooms, there are teachers that are not that tech savvy and need added professional development.  With the use of more devices also leads to more technical problems. Sometimes the internet can go down and leave the teachers to think on the fly as to what the students can work on or how to change the activity.   

I think the benefits outweigh the costs with use of technology and 1:1 programs. I found this super beneficial to read about as our district implemented a 1:1 program for our middle school last year.  We are learning how to make this program better and what professional development we need to add. Everything is a learning experience and if there are so many benefits, then not only do we need students buy-in, but we need teacher buy-in.  Teachers also need support in their schools.