New study: Fundamentals more important than tech in the classroom

Greater access to information technology does little to help students and may even undermine their performance, according to a new global study.

Countries around the world spend billions of dollars annually on computers, tablets, and other technology for students, but the comprehensive Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) study recommends that focusing on foundational reading and mathematical skills would be more productive.

Educators have assumed investment in information technology is necessary for preparing students for jobs in a modern economy, but the highest-performing countries on global standardized tests have been cautious about bringing technology into the classroom. In contrast, countries that invested more heavily in information technology have seen “no appreciable improvements in student achievement in reading, mathematics or science,” researchers concluded.

That does not mean computers are useless in the classroom. Students with moderate access to computers outperformed those with who used computers rarely. But students who used computers very frequently at school did significantly worse, even when researchers accounted for social background and demographics.

Even when tested specifically for digital skills, students in countries with only moderate reliance on technology in the classroom did as well or better than those in countries that had invested heavily in “wired” classrooms.

The study also suggested investment in education technology is not the best way to help struggling students.

“Perhaps the most disappointing finding of the report is that technology is of little help in bridging the skills divide between advantaged and disadvantaged students,” said Andreas Schleicher, the OECD’s education director.

Rather than relying on computers, the study concluded educators need to stay focused on the fundamentals.

“Put simply, ensuring that every child attains a baseline level of proficiency in reading and mathematics seems to do more to create equal opportunities in a digital world than can be achieved by expanding or subsidising access to high-tech devices and services,” Schleicher said.

Coming at a time when global spending on instructional technology is well over $13 billion, with $4 billion in annual spending from the United States alone, according to education technology magazine THE Journal, the OECD study suggests educators and legislators may need to reassess their priorities.