RTL2 RESEARCH PROJECT

Does the use of ICT resources in the classroom have

Abstract
The project seeks to survey both students and teachers, and conduct classroom observations
in order to determine whether or not the use of ICT in the classroom effects student
learning, and if so, what factors cause this effect?

The findings of the project will be used to recommend ways in which teachers can effectively
use ICT resources in the classroom to enhance student learning.

Taylor Laporte
 RTL2 Assessment 2 – Literature Review

In an era where technology permeates many sectors of our lives, attention has turned in recent
years to the use of ICT resources in the modern classroom. When considering this, an overarching
thesis question was formed. How does the use of ICT in the classroom effect student learning? This
question, when further analysed was then sectioned into 4 distinct sub-questions. These are: Does
the use of ICT resources in the classroom enhance student learning? How can teachers effectively
utilise ICT in the classroom to increase student learning? Which ICT resources are effective at
enhancing student learning? And finally, are teachers competent enough in the use of ICT resources
in the classroom? This literature review will henceforth focus on the first sub-question, Does the use
of ICT in the classroom enhance student learning?

Overwhelmingly, both teachers and students report that ICT does enhance student learning, with
the bulk of negative responses relating to the availability and reliability of ICT resources.

According to (Wilson & Boldeman, 2011) which used a mixed methods approach to research
including observations, teacher/staff interviews, and document reviews, ICT is increasingly used in
young people's daily lives, as such students find it relevant and they expect to use it as part of their
learning experiences in the classroom. In teacher interviews conducted by (Wilson & Boldeman,
2011) teachers consider ICT to be integral in linking knowledge learned in the classroom to the wider
world. This suggests that teachers believe that for ICT resources to be effectively used in the
classroom, they must be used in a way that allows students to understand the wider relevance of
their learning. It is shown in (Wilson & Boldeman, 2011) that if learning is relevant to students’ daily
lives, they are more likely to be engaged in learning. Teachers also noted that ICT can be an
extremely useful tool in developing literacy skills in their students. Overall, (Wilson & Boldeman,
2011) found that from the perspectives of both students and teachers, ICT resources are a viable and
important tool for developing students’ 21st Century Skills, and providing individualised learning,
provided that the use of ICT resources is in alignment with curriculum content.

(Lincoln, 2009), a study undertaken using interviews with students and teachers as well as focus
groups with teachers, similarly discusses ICT resource use and its alignment with the curriculum in
that when ICT use is based on a pre-planned learning goal, its use becomes more rigorous and
promotes higher order thinking. (Lincoln, 2009) also suggests that the use of ICT must be
differentiated to cater for the full range of student abilities. This relates to Understanding by Design
theory, which poses that planning the assessment first before planning the unit and learning
activities will help students to succeed. Furthermore, the task notification, marking criteria and
explanation from the teacher must be explicit to promote success. Furthermore, (Lincoln, 2009)’s
findings suggest that the use of ICT in the classroom increases student enthusiasm.

This is reiterated in (Lee, Tsai, Chai & Koh, 2014) whose study suggests that classroom settings do
have an influence on student motivation. When students are motivated, ICT can enhance
collaborative learning and self-directed learning, but only if students are participating concurrently
in collaborative and self-directed learning in class without the use of ICT. (Lee, Tsai, Chai & Koh,
2014) poses that this is because students need to understand the process of collaborative learning
and self-directed learning before they are able to use ICT to individually work on collaborative or
self-directed learning tasks. As the study only made use of student surveys, perhaps teacher
perspectives would be beneficial in further understanding this phenomenon as well as student
perspectives. Any differences between the 2 perspectives could be used as the basis for further
study.

(Hall & Higgins, 2005) looks at students perspectives of the positives and negatives of ICT use in the
classroom, specifically Interactive Whiteboards. The focus group results from the students suggests
that ICT is having positive effects on student engagement, motivation and attainment. Students
appreciate the versatility and variety offered by the Interactive Whiteboards as well as the ability to
use the whiteboards for viewing various multimedia. Students also duly noted that technical
problems with the interactive whiteboards cause disruptions and delays to lessons, and that glare
from sunlight or classroom lights can impede their vision. (Hall & Higgins, 2005) as a result of this
feedback, teachers may benefit from further training in the use of the whiteboards in order to
maximise learning time for students. Students also recognised the need for turn taking and
suggested that the teacher should ensure all students get a chance to use the board.

(Scornavacca, Huff & Marshall, 2009) surveyed students from a single class and their teacher in
order to determine whether allowing mobile phones to be used as an ICT resource in class can
increase student learning. Both the student and teacher responses showed that the use of mobile
phones to ask educators relevant questions or to allow educators to gauge student knowledge is
useful and that students find the use of mobile phones in the classroom engaging. Educators found
that when using mobile phones to connect with students, their responses and feedback were of
higher quality. It should be noted that this study focused on the perspective of one single teacher,
and as such, could be improved by surveying a greater number of both students and teachers.

The findings of (Sangrà & González-Sanmamed, 2010) similarly pose that teachers widely recognise
that ICT can increase student attention, understanding and application of learning as well as provide
an important feedback and response mechanism. Conversely to the findings of (Scornavacca, Huff &
Marshall, 2009), the teacher questionnaire conducted by (Sangrà & González-Sanmamed, 2010) also
suggests that the use of ICT can hinder student’s interaction and communication skills and as such, it
may not be beneficial to use ICT resources in the classroom so frequently.

(Benini, 2014), through the use of surveys, interviews and classroom observations also suggests that
the main concerns teachers tend to have is with the availability and reliability of technological
resources. (Benini, 2014) does note that most teachers see ICT resources as beneficial for student
learning despite this.

(Hussain, Morgan, Al-Jumeily & Tawfik, 2012) conducted surveys aimed at both students and
teachers to understand how teacher experience with ICT resources impacts students’ perceptions of
ICT use in the classroom. According to (Hussain, Morgan, Al-Jumeily & Tawfik, 2012) students on
average have been shown to spend 1 hour per day on the computer and can use the computer for
up to 4 hours a day without reporting tiredness. This suggests that students are enthusiastic about
the use of ICT and welcome its use in the classroom. However, (Hussain, Morgan, Al-Jumeily &
Tawfik, 2012) did not gather teacher perspective on how long students can effectively use ICT
resources before becoming tired or bored. Teachers are likely to have a better perspective on this
subject and as such, our data collection will include this. The most widely used ICT resources in
schools as reported by students, is the Microsoft Office suite. Building student skills in software such
as this, has a great deal of potential to build employable skills in students. According to teachers,
most ICT based lessons created are designed to teach literacy and numeracy, essential 21st Century
skills. The findings of (Hussain, Morgan, Al-Jumeily & Tawfik, 2012) also showed that the amount of
ICT used in the classroom by teachers correlates with the number of years of teaching experience.
Younger teachers with more ICT experience tend to use ICT in the classroom more so that older
teachers with less experience using ICT throughout their own education.

Across multiple studies, majority of students and teachers believe that ICT can be used in the
classroom to enhance student learning, but that there are specific parameters for success in this
endeavour such as alignment of curriculum with the use of ICT in the classroom and that this use
must be well planned by teachers. Conversely, specific challenges such as teacher experience in
using ICT resources, and the availability and reliability of these resources also come with introducing
ICT into the classroom.

Protocol Justification- Please see survey and observation questions on pages 4-8:

Most literature studied uses a mixed methods approach to classroom research, using interviews,
surveys and classroom observations. As such we pose to survey both teachers and students before
undertaking classroom observations in which field notes will be taken. Giving a preliminary survey to
both students and teachers will assist us in identifying themes or questions we wish to answer when
observing lessons.

Something noticeably lacking from the literature studied above was that none of the authors discuss
the effect on learning of student off-task behaviour when using ICT resources in the classroom. As
such, it has been decided to gather both student and teacher perspective on this subject in order to
be able to comment on whether or not the use of ICT in the classroom invites off-task behaviour in
students. (Hussain, Morgan, Al-Jumeily & Tawfik, 2012) speak about the effect of the length of ICT
usage time on student tiredness but failed to gather teacher’s perspectives on this. Teachers would
be excellent sources of information on this topic, as they are able to see how bored or tired students
are becoming from an outside observer’s perspective. As such, our teacher survey includes
questions on this in order to make use of this missed opportunity. We also wished to confirm
(Benini, 2014)’s assertion that teachers’ negative experiences with ICT relate to reliability and
availability of ICT resources. Therefore, we have included a question on this in our teacher survey.
(Hall & Higgins, 2005) findings suggested that students’ experiences using ICT in the classroom were
hindered by teachers being undertrained in the use of ICT resources and therefore spending lesson
time struggling with resources. Further study into this is needed in order to determine whether the
use of ICT resources is promoting or hindering student learning. As such, we have included a
question in both our student and teacher surveys on this subject. (Lee, Tsai, Chai & Koh, 2014) used
data from students to pose that ICT could be used to increase students self-directed learning and
collaborative learning skills, so long as students were well trained in using ICT resources and
collaborative and self-directed learning skills. To gain teachers’ insights into this matter, we included
a question in both student and teacher surveys which asks whether teachers spend time in class
actively teaching students how to use different ICT platforms.
Protocol 1: Student Survey, made using Survey Monkey
Protocol 2: Teacher Survey, also made using Survey Monkey
Protocol 3- Observation Themes/ Questions:
1. How long does the teacher spend setting up the ICT resource/s to be used in the lesson?
2. Which ICT resources has the teacher chosen to use in the lesson and why?
3. How long does it take students to access the ICT resource/s?
4. Are there any students using ICT for non-lesson related purposes? If so, how many?
5. Do students ask questions about how to use a specific ICT resource?
6. Does the teacher spend time explaining to students how they are to use the ICT resource/s
presented to them?
7. Are ICT resources being used to test students’ knowledge e.g. an online quiz or revision
game, or for students to apply their knowledge? e.g. creating a poster or collage, making a
video
8. Is the teacher confident in using the ICT resources used in the lesson?
9. How long has the teacher been teaching for? Did they use ICT throughout their own
education?
10. Are ICT resources readily available in the classroom, or do teachers have to book laptops or
similarly plan to use them?
11. Does the ICT resource have relevance to the curriculum?
12. Does the teacher make explicit the link between the curriculum and the ICT resource used in
the lesson?
Dear Potential Participant:

I am working on a project titled “How does the use of ICT resources in the classroom effect student
learning?” for the class, ‘Researching Teaching and Learning 2,’ at Western Sydney University. As part of
the project, I am collecting information to help inform the design of a teacher research proposal.

We will be looking to gather information from both students and teachers into the factors that influence
the successful implementation of ICT resources in the classroom and whether the implementation of ICT
resources in the classroom has a significant effect on student learning. We will be conducting surveys of
both teachers and students and conducting classroom observations in which researchers will take notes.

By signing this form or participating in this survey/observation I acknowledge that:

 I have read the project information given above and have been given the opportunity to discuss
the information and my involvement in the project with the researcher/s.
 The procedures required for the project and the time involved have been explained to me, and
any questions I have about the project have been answered to my satisfaction.
 I consent to undertake the survey/be observed in the classroom and in the event of classroom
observation my actions or words may be recorded in the form of notes by researchers.
 I understand that my involvement is confidential and that the information gained during this
data collection experience will only be reported within the confines of the ‘Researching Teaching
and Learning 2’ unit, and that all personal details will be de-identified from the data.
 I understand that I can withdraw from the project at any time, without affecting my relationship
with the researcher/s, now or in the future.

By signing below, I acknowledge that I am 18 years of age or older,

or

that I am the legal guardian of a person who is under 18 years old and provide my consent for the
person’s participation.

I agree to participate in: survey/observations

Please circle one or both to indicate whether you will participate in one or both the survey and
observations

Signed (Parent): _________________________________

Name: __________________________________

Student Name: _____________________________

Date: __________________________________
References
Benini, S. (2014). Is ICT really essential for learning? Perceptions and uses of ICTs for language
acquisition in secondary level environments. CALL Design: Principles And Practice - Proceedings
Of The 2014 EUROCALL Conference, Groningen, The Netherlands. doi:
10.14705/rpnet.2014.000189

Hall, I., & Higgins, S. (2005). Primary school students' perceptions of interactive whiteboards. Journal
Of Computer Assisted Learning, 21(2), 102-117. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2729.2005.00118.x

Hussain, A., Morgan, S., Al-Jumeily, D., & Tawfik, H. (2012). 2012 International Conference on
Education and e-Learning Innovations. [Piscataway, N.J.]: IEEE.

Lee, K., Tsai, P., Chai, C., & Koh, J. (2014). Students' perceptions of self-directed learning and
collaborative learning with and without technology. Journal Of Computer Assisted
Learning, 30(5), 425-437. doi: 10.1111/jcal.12055

Lincoln, M. (2009). Aligning ICT in assessment with teaching and learning: Enhancing student
achievement in the Middle Years. Canberra. Retrieved from
https://eprints.qut.edu.au/28191/1/c28191.pdf

Sangrà, A., & González-Sanmamed, M. (2010). The role of information and communication
technologies in improving teaching and learning processes in primary and secondary
schools. ALT-J, 18(3), 207-220. doi: 10.1080/09687769.2010.529108

Scornavacca, E., Huff, S., & Marshall, S. (2009). Mobile phones in the classroom. Communications Of
The ACM, 52(4), 142. doi: 10.1145/1498765.1498803

Wilson, K., & Boldeman, S. (2011). Exploring ICT Integration as a Tool to Engage Young People at a
Flexible Learning Centre. Journal Of Science Education And Technology, 21(6), 661-668. doi:
10.1007/s10956-011-9355-7