Home PublicationsJRTEPast IssuesVolume 38 Number 3: Spring 2006

	Edited by Dr. Lynne Schrum, University of Utah
formerly Journal of Research on Computing in Education

Volume 38 Number 3 Spring 2006

Wireless Laptops as Means For Promoting Active Learning In Large Lecture Halls

Miri Barak, Alberta Lipson, and Steven Lerman
Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Abstract

This paper reports on a study that examined the use of wireless laptops for promoting active learning in lecture halls. The study examined students’ behavior in class and their perceptions of the new learning environment throughout three consecutive semesters. An online survey revealed that students have highly positive perceptions about the use of wireless laptops, but less positive perceptions about being active in class. Class observations showed that the use of wireless laptops enhances student-centered, hands-on, and exploratory learning, as well as meaningful student-to-student and student-to-instructor interactions. However, findings also show that wireless laptops can become a source of distraction, if used for non-learning purposes.

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Contributor

Miri Barak, PhD, is the assessment coordinator of the Studio-1.00 project at the Center for Educational Computing Initiatives (CECI), Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the project director of the Mentor Teachers Program in Science, Technology, and Mathematics at the Technion–Israeli Institute of Technology.

Alberta Lipson, PhD, is the Associate Director for Educational Studies at the Teaching and Learning Laboratories, Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Steven Lerman is a professor in the department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, and the Director of the Center for Educational Computing Initiatives (CECI), at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

Contact

Miri Barak, PhD
The Department of Education in Technology and Science
The Technion–Israel Institute of Technology
Haifa, 32000, Israel
bmiriam@tx.technion.ac.il

Alberta Lipson, PhD
The Teaching and Learning Laboratory
Building 5-122
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02139-4307
lipson@mit.edu

Steven Lerman, Professor
The Center for Educational Computing Initiatives
Building 9-315
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
77 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02139-4307
lerman@mit.edu

Copyright © 2006, ISTE (International Society for Technology in Education). All rights reserved.