Educational Technology Research

Digital Devices 

While reading about educational statistics in today's education occupation, I came to find a few surprising things. Let's talk technology in the classroom. Technology in the classroom is very common in the digital world that we live in. It is surprising to encounter a classroom which does not use technology or digital devices in at least one way, shape or form. According to Speak findings for the school year from 2022-2023, around 84%of students have a personal device assigned to them at school but not all students are able to take that device home, especially in the urban areas. 

Image Source: Unfinished Business: Understanding the Digital Divide

If we take a look at the table above, we can see that teachers reported that a total of 84% of students are assigned a device however only 48% of students can actually take that device home. This statistic astonished me! In a technologically advanced world where we expect students to be able to complete school and use digital tools successfully we are withholding what they need. How are we expected to have students master the use of their digital learning device, if we are limiting its use? My students are all individually assigned a Chromebook and iPad for learning and are allowed to take home the Chromebook to complete schoolwork. The iPad does have to stay in school but they are given at least given one of the devices to continue digital learning at home. My students are able to use the educational applications on the Chromebook, along with Google Classroom and many other tools accessible through the computer. The location of my school is in a rural area so I am with the 51% of teachers that stated that the students are able to take home their devices. I would have to say that my students have an advantage to those who do not have access to their digital learning device at home. If you were surprised by this statistic I encourage you to read more reports completed by Project Tomorrow's Speak Up.

    In my AI Era 

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is more commonly used in education now than ever before. AI is a science that creates the concept for machines to think like humans. Many individuals, including students and teachers are more frequently using it in the educational setting. We see AI being used a lot for ChatGPT, which was released to the public in November 2022. ChatGPT is a chatbot that using language processing to create human-like dialogue. Among ChatGPt there are other AI supported tools such as search engines, images and video generators. 

Image Source: Commonsense Media

When reading on the statistic above from Common Sense Media, I was not too surprised to find out that there is a good percentage of teens using multiple generative AI tools. I have seen an increase in digital devices being used in student's everyday life. It only seems natural that students with access to advancing technology would want to learn how to use AI and make their lives easier. As the statistic shows, teens are using AI to assist them in their everyday lives. I absolutely see the benefits that AI brings to the classroom. It can allow educators to have more time to focus on teaching than having to make slides or presentations. I have used it in my classroom to assist me in making slides and generating images. It can create an opportunity for a more collaborative learning environment. However, I also see some drawbacks to AI in the classroom. AI is there as a tool to support humans not to be used in replace of human thought. AI should be there to provide additional support, research and data. AI may not always provide us with accurate information, so fact checking is always necessary! 

It is relevant, especially in this time of technology that educators do their own educational research. Read and watch videos on educational research and/or documents so that you are well informed and able to have insight into today's youth so can better understand their point of view. Students, like teachers should view AI has a tool to assist in our learning not do the learning for us. While I support the use of AI in moderation, I am afraid that students may misuse it and that could hinder their learning development. AI is an interesting topic and I am sure that we will see an increase in its use as we only grow in our technological advancements. If you would like to see what other teachers think about AI, read Artificial Intelligence in School.

References 

Hamilton, I. (2023, December 5). Artificial Intelligence in the Classroom: What Do Educators Think? – Forbes Advisor (B. Swanston, Ed.). Www.forbes.com; Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/advisor/education/it-and-tech/artificial-intelligence-in-school/ ‌

Speak Up Data Findings. (n.d.). Www.tomorrow.org. https://www.tomorrow.org/publications/speak-up-data-findings/ ‌

The Dawn of the AI Era: Teens, Parents, and the Adoption of Generative AI at Home and School. (n.d.). Retrieved September 21, 2024, from https://www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/default/files/research/report/2024-the-dawn-of-the-ai-era_final-release-for-web.pdf ‌