--- TIC-TECH message:
The following article was featured in Edgate's weekly newsletter. Thought
it may just reinforce the recent conversation regarding the DWA.
Study shows students test better on computers
By HEIDI B. PERLMAN
ASSOCIATED PRESS
BOSTON - Students today are more used to keyboards and computer screens than
paper, pencils and pink gum erasers, and researchers say that may impact
their results on the MCAS exam.
A report by Boston College's National Board on Educational Testing and
Public Policy indicates that students could score up to eight points higher
on the essay portion of the state's assessment test, if allowed to take it
on computer.
" These tests are given to hold students up to high standards, and to
evaluate the effectiveness of school programs, " said Michael Russell, a
Boston College professor and co-author of the study. " But you're
mis-measuring students if using computers is a regular part of the
educational experience. "
Russell said students taught to write on keyboards from an early age are
accustomed to using short cuts to edit and rewrite their work. When asked to
switch to paper and pencil they quickly tire, get sore arms, and can grow
frustrated, he said.
Russell said students should have the option of taking the essay portion of
the Massachusetts Comprehensive Assessment System exam on computer.
" If students are used to using technology, why not let them use it? " said
Tom Plati, director of libraries and educational technologies in Wellesley,
and co-author of the study.
The study was published last week in TCRecord.org, an online journal of
Teachers College at Columbia University.
The MCAS exam has been given annually to students in grades 4, 8 and 10
since 1998 as a way to assess student performance and evaluate school
districts.
Results have been disappointing each year, and more than one-third of all
sophomores failed the 2000 exam. Beginning with the class of 2003, all
students will be required to pass the MCAS in order to graduate.
Department of Education spokesman Jonathan Palumbo said the study's findings
were interesting, but said it will take time before drastic changes to the
way the test is administered could be made.
" Our first concentration now is to help kids pass the test, " he said. "
Not to say helping kids score higher isn't important, but right now we first
want them to pass the test so they can graduate. "
To conduct the study, about 500 students were given the essay portion of the
previous year's MCAS last February. Half took the test on computer, the
other half wrote their essays out long-hand.
All of the students tested were from the Wellesley public schools, which has
a student-to-computer ratio of 4.7. According to the Department of Education
most districts had an average ratio of 6.3 percent, as of the 1998-99 school
year.
On average, those using simple word processing programs on computer wrote
significantly longer essays, and scored higher than their peers.
Some state officials have criticized the study for inaccurately representing
the state's demographics. In response, Plati and Russell called for the
study to be recreated around the state.
The findings, both said, will likely be the same.
" The MCAS is supposed to measure the way we teach, " Plati said. " But if
we teach writing using technology, then how do grades obtained when kids are
using paper and pencil teach us anything at all? "
Eric Faulkner
Project Manager
Instructional Technology
Seattle Public Schools
mailto:efaulkner@seattleschools.org <mailto:efaulkner@seattleschools.org>
phone: 206.366.2611
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