Lennis Wilson Source 2

A)  Angrist, Joshua, and Victor Lavy. “New Evidence on Classroom Computers and Pupil Learning.” The Economic Journal. 2002: 735. JSTOR Journals. Web. Oct. 14 2016.

B)  How does the use of computers in the classroom effect learning and overall academic achievement?

C)  I think that for the most part computers can be beneficial to learning in the classroom because the provide an enormous amount of info at your fingertips, but they can also pose to be a big distraction. Traditional pen and paper method has much smaller margin for distraction compared to using a computer.

Part 2: In this article, the authors conducted a study to see if there was a correlation between the use of computers to learn and better test scores. They found between the schools who had a largely computer based learning infrastructure and schools who used more traditional methods of learning, the schools who used traditional methods generally had slightly better test scores, although not much better.

                Since the use of computers in the classroom did not lead to better test scores, it led me to another question. Does the implementation of technology in schools take away from more effective resources for learning? There were no improved scores when they introduced a computer based learning program in the article, so did they waste money that could have went to a better resource such as an upgraded library, better teaching staff, etc. This source only clarified my answer even more that technology does not necessarily help you in the classroom, it only serves as a convenient tool but still has many distractions. The evidence is there in statistics to support the argument that computers in the classroom does not positively affect test scores and ultimately learning.

                This source could sort of respond to my first source in the fact that they both show problems related to using tech in classrooms. The biggest point of this source was that there could be better resources, and relating to the first article, maybe there is a way to implement new learning resources that will absolutely benefit students learning and test scores, while also cater to the changing needs of present day students.

                The question this source led me to was, what role do computers and other technologies play in other learning resources available to students? Next I am going to look for other types of learning resources that show a positive correlation between it and learning with enough evidence to back it up. I still need to know more about the positives of using technology for learning in the classroom, and then try to better understand how those positives compare to everything I have researched already.