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Changing How and WhatChildren Learn in Schoolwith Computer-BasedTechnologies
Jeremy M.Roschelle,Roy D.Pea,Christopher M.Hoadley,Douglas N.Gordin,Barbara M.Means
Abstract
Schools today face ever-increasing demands in their attempts to ensure that studentsare well equipped to enter the workforce and navigate a complex world. Research indi-cates that computer technology can help support learning, and that it is especiallyuseful in developing the higher-order skills of critical thinking, analysis, and scientificinquiry. But the mere presence of computers in the classroom does not ensure theireffective use. Some computer applications have been shown to be more successfulthan others, and many factors influence how well even the most promising applica-tions are implemented.This article explores the various ways computer technology can be used to improvehow and what children learn in the classroom. Several examples of computer-basedapplications are highlighted to illustrate ways technology can enhance how childrenlearn by supporting four fundamental characteristics of learning: (1) active engage-ment, (2) participation in groups, (3) frequent interaction and feedback, and (4) con-nections to real-world contexts. Additional examples illustrate ways technology canexpand what children learn by helping them to understand core concepts in subjectslike math, science, and literacy. Research indicates, however, that the use of technol-ogy as an effective learning tool is more likely to take place when embedded in abroader education reform movement that includes improvements in teacher training,curriculum, student assessment, and a school’s capacity for change. To help informdecisions about the future role of computers in the classroom, the authors concludethat further research is needed to identify the uses that most effectively support learn-ing and the conditions required for successful implementation.
A
teacher from the late nineteenth century entering a typical class-room today would find most things quite familiar: chalk and talk, aswell as desks and texts, predominate now as they did then. Yet thisnineteenth-century teacher would be shocked by the demands of today’scurricula. For example, just a century ago, little more was expected of high
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The Future of Children CHILDREN AND COMPUTER TECHNOLOGY Vol.10•No.2 – Fall/Winter 2000
 Jeremy M. Roschelle,Ph.D., is a senior cogni-tive scientist at theCenter for Technology in Learning at SRI  International, an inde- pendent research orga-nization in MenloPark, CA. Roy D. Pea, D.Phil.,Oxon., is director of theCenter for Technologyin Learning at SRI  International, an inde- pendent research organi- zation in Menlo Park,CA; and consulting pro- fessor at the School of  Education at Stanford University.Christopher M. Hoadley,Ph.D., is a research and computer scientist at theCenter for Technologyin Learning at SRI  International, an inde- pendent research orga-nization in MenloPark, CA. Douglas N. Gordin,Ph.D., is a researchstaff member at IBM’sT.J. Watson ResearchCenter, Applied LearningServices Department in Yorktown, NY. Barbara M. Means,Ph.D., is codirector of the Center for Technology in Learningat SRI International,an independent researchorganization in MenloPark, CA.http://www.futureofchildren.org
 
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school students than to recite famous texts, recount simple scientific facts,and solve basic arithmetic problems. Only 3.5% of students were expectedto learn algebra before completing high school.
1
Today, all high school stu-dents are expected to be able to read and understand unfamiliar text
2
andto become competent in the processes of scientific inquiry and mathemat-ics problem solving, including algebra.
3
This trend of rising expectations isaccelerating because of the explosion of knowledge now available to thepublic and the growing demands of the workplace.
4
More and more stu-dents will have to learn to navigate through large amounts of informationand to master calculus and other complicated subjects to participate fully inan increasingly technological society.
5
Thus, although the classroom tools of blackboards and books that shape how learning takes place have changedlittle over the past century, societal demands on what students learn haveincreased dramatically.There is consensus among education policy analysts that satisfying thesedemands will require rethinking how educators support learning.
6
Debatenow focuses on identifying and implementing the most appropriate andhighest priority reforms in the areas of curricula, teacher training, studentassessment, administration, buildings, and safety. The role that technologycould or should play within this reform movement has yet to be defined.Innovations in media technology, including radio, television, film, andvideo, have had only isolated, marginal effects on how and what childrenlearn in school, despite early champions of their revolutionary educationalpotential.
7
(See the article by Wartella and Jennings in this journal issue.)Similarly, although computer technology is a pervasive and powerful forcein society today with many proponents of its educational benefits, it is alsoexpensive and potentially disruptive or misguided in some of its uses and inthe end may have only marginal effects. Nevertheless, several billion dollarsin public and private funds have been dedicated to equipping schools withcomputers and connections to the Internet, and there are promises of evenmore funds dedicated to this purpose in the future.
8
(See Appendix A inthis journal issue for more information on sources of funding.) As ever-increasing resources are committed to bringing computers into the class-room, parents, policymakers, and educators need to be able to determinehow technology can be used most effectively to improve student learning.
9
This article explores the characteristics of computer technology and itspotential to enhance learning. The first section highlights a number of computer-basedtechnology applications shown to be effective in improvinghow and what children learn. Of course, just because computer technologycan lead to improvements in learning does not mean that it will do so simply
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78THE FUTURE OF CHILDREN – FALL/WINTER 2000
because technology is infused into the classroom. Studies overwhelminglysuggest that computer-based technology is only one element in what mustbe a coordinated approach to improving curriculum, pedagogy, assessment,teacher development, and other aspects of school structure. Therefore, thesecond section of this article discusses the changes in organizational struc-tures and supports that should be considered when schools are planning astrategy for incorporating technology. This article concludes with a brief dis-cussion of a framework to guide future research efforts.
Effective Use of Technologyas a Learning Tool
Studies conducted on the effectiveness of technology in the classroom often havemixed results, making it difficult to general-ize about technology’s overall impact inimproving learning.
10,11
For example, in oneof the few large-scale studies conductednationwide, some approaches to using edu-cational technology were found to increasefourth- and eighth-grade students’ mathe-matical understanding, whereas othersproved less effective.
12
More specifically, com-puter-based applications that encouragedstudents to reason deeply about mathematicsincreased learning, whereas applications thatattempted to make repetitive skill practicemore entertaining for students actuallyseemed to decrease performance. In con-trast, a meta-analysis of more than 500research studies of computer-based instruc-tion found positive effects on studentachievement tests resulted primarily fromcomputer tutoring applications; other uses of the computer, such as simulations andenrichment applications, were found to haveonly minimal effects.
13
(See Table 1 at theend of this article for a summary of findingsfrom these and several other major studieson the effects of technology use in kinder-garten through 12th-grade classrooms.)Three key reasons contribute to thesemixed results. First, hardware and softwarevary among schools, and there is evengreater variation in the ways schools usetechnology, so the failure to produce uni-form results is not surprising. Second, suc-cessful use of technology is alwaysaccompanied by concurrent reforms inother areas such as curriculum, assessment,and teacher professional development, sothe gains in learning cannot be attributed touse of technology alone. And third, rigor-ously structured longitudinal studies thatdocument the isolated effects of technologyare expensive and difficult to implement, sofew have been conducted.Although today’s research can supportonly limited conclusions about the overalleffectiveness of technology expenditures inimproving education, studies conducted todate suggest that certain computer-basedapplications can enhance learning for stu-dents at various achievement levels. The fol-lowing sections highlight several promisingapplications for improving how and whatchildren learn. The “how” and the “what”are separated because not only can technol-ogy help children learn things better, it alsocan help them learn better things. Framedin terms of the growing expectations inmathematics instruction, the “how”addresses the problem of enhancing thelearning of the 70% to 100% of studentsalready expected to learn algebra. The“what” addresses the problem of making itpossible for the vast majority of students togo beyond algebra to learn calculus—a topicthat is unreachable for most students with-out a revitalized curriculum that takes advan-tage of technology.Based on the research to date, the strong-est evidence showing positive gains in learn-ing tends to focus on applications in scienceand mathematics for upper elementary,middle, and high school students. This evi-dence generally applies to both boys andgirls. Future research may find gains that areequally strong for the lower elementarygrades and across other curriculum areas orthat are gender or age specific. The discus-sion below reflects the limitations of theresearch to date, however, and althoughpromising applications across a variety of subjects are considered, applications in theareas of science and mathematics are mostoften highlighted.
Enhancing How Children Learn
A major scientific accomplishment of the
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