According to two reports recently issued by the Department of Education, 99% of US public school classrooms have internet access. The reports also show that 90% of people ages 5 to 17 use computers and 59% of them use the Internet. The report also shows that the gaps between the use of computers by boys and girls has pretty much disappeared but that there are still gaps in the usage outside of school between whites, blacks and Hispanics. A major portion of this difference is attributed to computer access in the home.
The implications of this for classroom instruction - including the use of simulation and computer games - seems enormous. However, the report also indicated that while 87% of public schools with internet access had offered professional development to teachers to help them integrate the use of the Internet into the curriculum, many teachers are not yet comfortable enough with the tool to incorporate it.
This information was obtained from an article in the Commercial Appeal dated 11/2/03. Additional information was obtained from the Department of Education press release dated 10/29/03 which also contains links to the actual reports.
No comments:
Post a Comment