Bringing Your Own Mobile Device to the Classroom Kimberley L. Gittman Virginia Tech

1、Mobile Devices 8Running Head: Mobile DevicesBringing Your Own Mobile Device to the ClassroomKimberley L. GittmanVirginia TechResearch ReportKim G二月 12, 2021Introduction In the current public education environment, many students own a smart phone or portable electronic device. Also

2、, in todays economy, public education budgets are losing funding and their ability to supply 21st Century learning tools. One way to offset this deficit is to allow students to bring their own technology (BYOT) or device (BYOD). A major benefit of allowing students to bring their own device is teach

3、ers can be creative and redesign their curriculum to motivate and engage students of all ability levels with technology they already own and are familiar (Puente, 2012). Along with the benefits come many situations that educators view as undesirable and even burdensome to a traditional setting such

4、as infrastructure, network security, and good digital citizenship. Despite these hurdles to tackle, should administrators, teachers, and parents, explore an untapped resource for elementary school students to increase motivation, achievement, and real life learning using 21st century tools that are

5、already in their pockets? It is hypothesized that bringing your own devices to school will be a common practice in the near future and will in turn engage students of all ability levels, increase real-life learning, and make students better able to function in a global 21st century. The following li

6、terature reviews will attempt to support this hypothesis. Literature ReviewClark and Salomons (1986) article discusses the different ways that media has influenced instruction along with its effects on student achievement. The study looks at various philosophies and how previous research can affect

7、the future use of media in instruction. Different views on symbol systems are discussed and may be a factor for school administrators and teachers decisions to use different media for instructional purposes. Salomon (as cited in Clark and Salomon, 1986) believes that “the closer the match between th

8、e communicational symbol system and the content and the task-specific mental representations the easier the instructional message is to recode and comprehend.” It may be for this reason that school administrators are always trying to use the newest technology to make an impact on student achievement

9、 rather than using the technology they or the students have in a more creative manner to connect to differentiated abilities. They believe a better way to deliver a “symbol” will increase learning. Clark (as cited in Clark and Salomon, 1986) states that learning and media depends on the achievement

10、level of the students and the structure needed for them to succeed. There is not one certain type of media to use that fits all. In addition, Clark and Salomon (1986) point out that as each new medium comes along in hopes of being the next fad to increase learning there is a large industrial market

11、hoping to make a huge profit. In their suggestions for future research they note that “most new media are not developed with educational applications on their foremost goal.” (Clark and Salomon, 1986, p.15). They suggest that improvement in the media should be just that and not the “glorification of

12、 the media.”(Clark et al, 1986). With the decrease in public school funds and the ever-ending attempt to keep up with the latest technology comes the idea of BYOD to school. Dr. Teresa Franklin a professor of Instructional Technology at Ohio University talks about using mobile devices in her article

13、; “Mobile Learning: At the Tipping Point.” Franklin describes the tipping point in regards to mobile technology as “ the movement of critical mass to a point when everyone is involved.”(Franklin, 2011, p. 262) and thinks educators are missing the Tipping Point of mobile learning. Franklin (2011) als

14、o believes that learning is greater when the learning is active and involves talking, listening, reading, writing and reflection. This active learning can be done on mobile devices and could accommodate learners at all achievement levels as Clark and Salomon discussed. Rebecca Hill (2011) points out

15、 in her article; the question is whether to continue banning students smart phones or mobile devices or to allow them to be used for creative and motivated learning. She (2011) makes reference to a Common Sense study done in 2009 that 69% of schools are banning cell phones for reasons stated earlier

16、 but wonders what the real reason for banning these devices really is. Hill (2011) thinks we should be teaching students to use the technology they have and already use in the real world instead of avoiding or fearing this technology. Dr. Elliott Soloway, Professor of Education and founding member o

17、f GoKnow Mobile Learning Solutions believes the fear of using smart phones in the class keeps educators from developing this strategy and promoting project based learning (as cited in Hill, 2011). There have been several successful BYOT pilot programs developed in public school districts throughout

18、the nation such as the program at St. Marys Intermediate School in St. Marys Ohio. Hill (2011) states this school obtained smart phones for those that could not afford one through grants with cell phone providers. Kelly Puente (2012) also talks about the program at St. Marys in her article. She tell

19、s about one teacher who used the phones to take pictures of different geometric shapes outside in lieu of discussing them in a class lecture. He would also send ability appropriate math problems by phone to his students to differentiate instruction (2012). Mr. Newcomb, one of the teachers to impleme

20、nt this design is quoted saying, “Its amazing to see how excited they are.” (as cited in Puente, 2012. p. 60). Puente (2012) also talks about the Stratford Community School Districts mobile pilot plan where elementary students are using the phones to draw animated drawings of the water cycle and blo

21、gging about fields trips as they travel back home.Prior to St. Marys cell phone program they used PDAs for the mobile device and conducted a case study with GoKnow, Inc. and the study states:Statistically, overall grade scores have increased along with individual assessments; behavior incidences are

22、 down, providing factual data that student engagement is a clear indicator of success. As a snapshot comparison, data was collected for two SMCS third grade classrooms in the same school, one with the PDAs and one without. The classroom using PDAs has increased their overall math average 3.36% in ju

23、st 18 weeks, whereas the classroom without the PDAs only increased their average by 1.65%. Another comparison is a social studies unit assessment where the PDA classroom achieved an 89.68% and the non-PDA classroom received an average score of 83.27%. Since introducing the PDAs, the number of behavi

24、or incidents reported decreased by 21 as measured by comparing reports from the first and third quarters. Note: Both classrooms included in this report have 22 students. The PDA classroom has one ESL student and four special needs students, while the non-PDA classroom has two ESL students and no spe

25、cial needs students during this study. Retrieved from /Administration/kmench/SMCS_CaseStudy_2009_Final.pdfIt is quite common for schools to ban cell phones for reasons that are legitimate but even with these bans in place students still bring and use the phones as noted by Hill

26、 (2011) and a Pew Internet Research Study retrieved from /Reports/2010/Teens-and-Mobile-Phones/Summary-of-findings.aspx. The study determined: 65% of cell-owning teens at schools that completely ban phones bring their phones to school every day. 58% of cell-owning teens at s

27、chools that ban phones have sent a text message during class.With this data we need to determine if it is time to use the technology that the students already have and are comfortable using as an instructional tool. In Cathleen Norris and Elliot Soloways (2011) article, they have the opinion that 20

28、15 is the year that every public school student will use their own device at school. They discuss critical issues that need addressed if this is the case and are items for future research. Norris and Soloway (2011) list topics to consider that include; 1) functionality of the devices for 24/7 inquir

29、y-based learning, 2) equity and how to make sure all students have access to a device, 3) responsibility or teaching students to be good digital citizens, and 4) safety of our children from cyberbullying. SummaryBased on the literature review there seems to be a large population that believes BYOT/B

30、YOD is the next popular media to be used for instruction. The educators in favor of this model seem to think the naysayers are holding our students back from 24/7 learning, which engages and motivates every type of learner. The research in this study does address the question that asks if BYOT or BY

31、OD should be considered by educators and parents as a viable tool to increase learning and achievement for elementary school students. That being said, the research seems to be opinions of those very knowledgeable in their fields; therefore, there is validity in their opinions. Reliability would be

32、raised if more case studies similar to the one conducted at St. Marys Intermediate School were done. This was an example of studying one instance that could be inferred to other populations. The study also included an experiment with an independent variable of using PDAs vs. not using PDAs and a dep

33、endent variable of increased scores and/or reduced behavior problems. The results are impressive but would be more reliable if more quantitative data was provided for data analysis along with more qualitative information of interviews with participants to gather their opinions and experiences.Decrea

34、sed funding for public schools is a fact as is increased use of portable mobile devices with Internet access. With more students having smart phones or some type of mobile device even among lower income levels, using these devices for educational purposes must be explored or even planned for future

35、21st Century learning tools and resources. These devices allows for 24/7 learning and fulfills the 1:1 ratio that is most wanted by todays educators. Based on this information and review of the literature, the question should be rewritten to ask Due to decreased funding for public education and an increases in mobile devices owned by students, should administrators, teachers, and parents, explore an untapped resource for all sch