Possibilities and challenges for TEL from a student perspective through the uptake and use of digital technologies in a 1:1 initiative

Abstract

The uptake and use of digital technologies in the classroom is studied in Unos Umeå, a joint One-to-One (1:1) project between Umeå University and the Municipality of Umeå in Sweden. This paper presents the results of a survey completed by upper secondary students (N=923), focus group interviews (N=7) and classroom observations (N=22). Students see possibilities in accessing information, text skills, and work variation, while the challenges they see are difficulties in focusing on the task at hand, technical problems, and the lack of alignment between students’ and teachers’ skills in Information and Communication Technology (ICT). Using the Ecology of Resources Model (Luckin 2010), these challenges can be interpreted as the manifestation of filters in the learning environment. How collaborative learning environments are created, the lack of alignment between teachers’ and students’ ICT skills and how everyday use of computers in the classroom develops will hold implications for Technology Enhanced Learning (TEL) in the classroom.