Team+America

=Team America=

The American Experience
• **Essential** **Question** - How has technology affected students abilities to learn in America? • **Challenge** - Find how technology has changed and shaped how students learn in the present day. • **Guiding** **Questions** - 1. Can increased technology use in the classroom have negative consequences? 2. How has the internet changed how modern students learn? 3. Do you think that technology has made learning in school easier, more effective, and more efficient? • **Guiding Resources** -Create a quia survey for those to take, the survey will be based on the opinions of students regarding the use of technology in the classroom. [|Done] 330 Students responded to our survey, with a combined total of 90.03% (298 students) reporting helpful effects from the use of technology in the classroom. 79.75% of students reported some levels of distraction while in class from the use of technology. 66% responded to a further increase in technology would be beneficial, and 50% think that technology is most effective in English, followed by History (29%) and Science (12.54%).

-Survey teachers in various departments in the school regarding their opinion on the use of technology. Answers are a rating of 1-10, with 10 being the highest. 1. What is your overall opinion regarding the use of laptops in the classroom? History- 8 (Very Helpful) Tech Department- 9 (Very Helpful) Library- 10 (Extremely Helpful) Math (two results)- 7, 8 (Very Helpful) 2. Do you feel that the use of laptops can be distracting? History- 8 (Very distracting) Tech Department- 3 (Not very distracting) Library- 10 (Extremely distracting) Math (two results)- 8 (Very distracting), 3 (not very distracting) 3. What is your opinion on further increase of technology in the classroom? History- Would be happy Tech Department- Any increase is always positive Library- Beneficial Math (two results)- Not beneficial, beneficial 4. Do you feel that technology has brought positive or negative effects when compared to schools 25 years ago? History- Positive Tech Department- Positive Library- Positive Math (two results)- Positive, Positive -Find internet articles on studies regarding the effectiveness of increased technology in the classroom.

• [|University of Michigan] This study by the University of Michigan found various pros and cons for technology use in the classroom. Some pros were that while teacher instruction can become tedious, technology provides motivation to students. The study cites several previous studies which link technology to being effective in helping those understand content better through engaging users through games and problem solving situations. The study states that students can access vast amounts of information from all around the globe. Some cons of computer use by the study was improper use by teachers who are not properly trained. The study concluded that the pros vastly outweigh the cons.

• [|Educause] A study by EDUCause, a nonprofit organization, examining the preference of technology use by certain career paths such as engineering and fine arts. 72% of college students surveyed preferred moderate to extensive use of Information Technology in the classroom. The students reported various positive aspects of technology use such as improved communication with the professor and classmates, as well as more free time to practice and improving the presentation of work. The study also reported 48.5% of students saying the main improvement from technology use was convenience, with 16.6% saying it helped them manage their activities better.

• Solution Action Team America • **Notes** - Today we changed our topic to make it more descriptive. In the next week we will create a survey regarding the use of technology, in particular laptops, in school, asking for their opinions. 9/20 - Completed Guiding Activities, began working on Quia survey on technology use in PV. 9/21 - Emailed survey to the school, researched and found 2 sources.