TAR project accepted for publication

Two CIRTL Teaching-as-Research fellows from the University of Colorado at Boulder, Angel Hoekstra and Bethany Wilcox, have just received word that the research data gathered for our TAR project is to be published in Astronomy Education Review in 2012!

The data to be published in this paper - initially presented in a poster at the 2011 CIRTL Forum in Madison, Wisconsin - derive from our work on a collaborative, interdisciplinary research team with Dr. Doug Duncan (Astronomy). Dr. Hoekstra and Ms. Wilcox are pleased to share the upcoming paper title and abstract with the CIRTL community:

“Digital Devices, Distraction and Student Performance: Does In-Class Cell Phone Use Reduce Learning?"

Duncan, D.K., Hoekstra, A.R., and Wilcox, B.R., University of Colorado

ABSTRACT

The recent increase in the use of digital devices such as laptop computers, iPads and web-enabled cell phones has generated concern about how technologies affect student performance. Combining observation, survey, and interview data, this research assesses the effects of technology use on student attitudes and learning. Data were gathered in eight introductory science courses at a major public university in 2010-2011. Results show a significant negative correlation between in-class cell phone use and final course grades, with use of cell phones corresponding to a drop of 0.36 ± 0.08 on a 4-point scale where 4.0 = A. These findings are consistent with recent research (1) suggesting students cannot multi-task nearly as effectively as they think they can. While 75% of students reported regular cell phone use, observation data suggests undergraduates typically under-report the frequency of their in-class use of digital devices.

... We will be happy to share this paper with anyone in the CIRTL community interested in the effects of technology use for teaching and learning. For a PDF copy, please email Angel.Hoekstra@colorado.edu. Thank you to all in the CIRTL community for your support of our work!