Research findings

"We need a different kind of learning experience."  
(Evans, Julie.  Speak Up 2015 National Results - From Print to Pixel. May 2017
http://www.tomorrow.org/speakup/from-print-to-pixel.html)

Students, educators and parents agree:  in order to prepare students for the future, educational institutions need to make some changes.  This was a theme I inferred over and over again while studying the research.  This article had some relevant infographics, the one I was most interested in was what teachers say about technology use in 2015.  See below:

The infographic discusses 10 important findings for their study:
teachers are using digital content more than ever before; more game-based learning is happening (at least in elementary school); flipped instruction is becoming more popular; teachers' are spending more time in the role of video producer; teachers fear the digital divide is real, so are reluctant to assign internet-based homework; teachers are using texting as a way to communicate; digital reading is more engaging for students but teachers feel it can be more distracting as well; there's a teachers' wish list (top vote getter is using tech to differentiate instruction); teachers want to learn more about technology in school; and teachers are discovering and leveraging the power of social media as a professional development tool for lesson plans and other classroom activities.  These claims were nothing shocking, although the concerns with reading digitally caught my interest.  I went on to look at the next graphic, what students think about digital learning...

Some surprises for me here:
86% of 9-12th graders have personal access to mobile devices.  My students have chromebooks, but often request to use their phones for activities.  I always ask them, how can you see anything on your phone?  But the graphics have improved and texts and images are pretty clear.  I do still have one or two students who don't have phones.  And according to this study smartphones are the #1 choice for accessing social media.  Another surprise:  47% of this age group are tweeting.  I've asked my students if they tweet and they say no, but we have done one or two assignments where I've asked them to use twitter (summaries, character development, reflection, etc.).  Not surprising:  students are also using youtube for online videos in helping them with homework, just like adults do when we need/want to learn something.  Students are also asking for more games because of the belief that games help them learn difficult concepts more easily.  Girls want to learn to code as a class or after-school activity, 64% of girls 3-5th grade and 50% 6-8th grade.  

Moving on to the parent perspective, to me, parents were waayyy supportive of ed tech.  85% of parents believe that the effective use of tech is important, and their top concern is the variation of tech use between teachers.  Parents are also in favor of blended learning (55%); the traditional classroom came in second (42%).  I need an effective way to text parents so my phone number doesn't show up (is that Remind?) because 55% of parents would like their child's teacher to communicate with them via text.   And this is really good news:  64% of parents say they would pay an extra technology fee to support digital learning expenses.  Maybe part of that fee could be used for teachers to have the time for professional development and support to learn how to use all this tech!

I looked at one other research resource because I'm fascinated by the differences between ereading and print reading.  If I was getting a Ph.D. in reading I would definitely think about this field for my dissertation.  Research is coming out but more needs to be done.  Children, Teens, and Reading a Common Sense Media Research Brief 2014 asked some compelling questions that could be the basis of my research:
1.  How does ereading affect the amount that children and youth read?
2.  Does ereading affect how children read?
3.  Do electronic books improve literacy in early childhood?
4.  Does reading on a screen affect comprehension and retention, either positively or negatively?  

Another important area for research this study mentions is the extent and impact of "short form" online reading (tweets, SMS texts, emails, etc.).  According to this report, the use of tech in recent years has already changed the nature of reading.  We could leverage this to promote reading achievement, reduce disparities and achievement gaps, and reignite a love for reading by young people.