A new meta-analysis of 15 years of research studies reveals that giving every student a laptop increased student achievement and gave a boost to students’ 21st-century skills. Although the number of rigorous studies is limited, the finding is clearly a good sign for 1:1 proponents and underscores the need for additional study. An additional review of 86 academic papers found some additional benefits, including: increased student technology use; more student-centered and project-based instruction; greater student engagement; and better relationships between students and teachers. Elliot Soloway of the University of Michigan notes that these findings have the potential to reshape the debate around the impact of technology. He says that the real benefit of giving every student access to a computer is to move from “instructive” to “constructive” learning, or from “teaching kids to remember something to teaching them how to figure something out.”
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