Evidence that technology is beneficial

Earlier it was mentioned that, at first glance, evidence may seem to be pointing to a clear conclusion, but with deeper thought the truth actually could be found in the opposite direction.

Do not be tempted to make hasty judgments based solely on isolated evidence. It is only by studying the big picture as a whole that you can gain insight to allow you to make informed decisions.

When the evidence of students not using computers achieving better test scores is presented in isolation, this can lead people to believe that it is better to not use computers in education. Of course this is far from true, and we can see evidence of this by looking deeper into the statistics beyond simply test scores alone.

Among OECD nations, the countries that consistently achieve the best scores in standard testing for the STEM subjects are Japan, Singapore, and South Korea.

In our research into this, we identified some important metrics that seem to suggest that the success of the top three OECD nations in STEM fields is not due simply to luck or coincidence.

The metrics identified were:

1. Teachers in the countries mentioned tended to have a more open-minded approach to allowing students to explore their interests and find solutions to problems without intervention from the teacher.
2. The same teachers tended to have above-average understanding of technology, suggesting they have had more opportunity to receive quality training in the technology they employed in the classroom.
3. Students in these classes showed a tendency to achieve better scores. This trend occurred even though when student results were looked at as a whole, the students who did not have access to technology performed better. This suggests that the technology is not the problem, but that without access to training to effectively use the technology, neither teachers nor students will see optimal results.

Schools can benefit from the findings by:

• Encouraging teachers to be open-minded about new approaches and potentially beneficial technologies. Arguments such as "It has always been done this way, so it should continue to be." can be stifling to innovation and improvement.
• Providing teachers with open access to technology training when it is needed.
• Encouraging discussion of innovative methods in education. When ideas are shared and discussed, it can lead to even further innovations being discovered.
• Seeking outside consultation when necessary. Sometimes it can help to have expert opinion to gain a fresh perspective on problems and solutions. An advantage of consultation is that independent consultants are not influenced by internal politics or conflicts of interest. This helps ensure suggestions will be more likely to be honest, fair, and unbiased.

These recommendations address not only the importance of teacher training but also the need for a cultural shift in education, where openness to innovation, collaboration, and external expertise are valued. Implementing these suggestions can contribute to more effective and innovative educational practices.

Citations:

1. OECD (2018), Program for International Student Assessment
2. Pew Research Center (2020), Parenting Children in the Age of Screens
3. Walsh E & Walsh D (2019), "How Children Develop Empathy", Psychology Today