1:1 LAPTOP INITIATIVES AND TEACHER PRACTICE CHANGE: AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF CONSTRUCTIVIST TEACHING PRACTICE

Abstract

This exploratory study poses a number of important questions regarding the costly reform movement of 1:1 laptop programs. The study seeks to evaluate the extent to which teachers are genuinely adopting the educational reform movement of 1:1 laptop initiatives. The extent to which teachers are genuinely adopting (represented by constructivist teaching practice) versus symbolically adopting (represented by traditional teaching practice) is measured by a survey instrument, the 1:1 Constructivist Learning Environment Survey (1:1 CLES), with follow up interviews conducted to gain additional insight. The study was conducted with teachers in a mid-sized suburban district in the Midwest, which had recently begun implementation of a 1:1 initiative. The results indicated that there is a wide spectrum of traditional and constructivist practice among teachers of the district. Teachers which the survey identified as being constructivist in their use of laptops clearly saw their role as that of a facilitator and consistently used the laptops in methods that applied student-centered instructional approaches. Traditional teachers used the laptops as more of a replacement, communication, and efficiency device, and did not show frequent application of constructivist approaches to how the laptops were used. While there was some variance, the majority of teachers were implementing the 1:1 reform with fidelity as demonstrated by their constructivist instructional practice. This study provides a new lens through which to evaluate the extent of genuine adoption of 1:1 initiatives, looking at the level of adoption of the reform movement as measured by the level of constructivist practice. This lens provides rich opportunities to better understand the extent to which 1:1 laptop initiatives are being adopted. In order to gauge the effectiveness of the reform movement, the level of adoption must first be evaluated.