June 2008 — News
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Are Underprivileged Students Better Off Without Computers?
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We take it for granted that computers have tremendous potential to transform education. But this potential isn't always going to be realized, especially where support for improving outcomes through technology is lacking. But can access to computers actually hinder education? According to new research that focused on computer adoption among the poor in one Eastern European country, computers at home can actually help to lower the grade point averages of students, distract students from homework, and potentially contribute to behavioral issues.
In a study released in May 2008 and conducted in 2007, The Effect of Computer Use on Child Outcomes (PDF), researchers Cristian Pop-Eleches at Columbia University and Ofer Malamud at the University of Chicago followed up on a 2005 government program in Romania aimed at low-income families that provided vouchers worth 200 Euros (the "Euro 200" program, administered through Romania's Ministry of Education) to be used for the purchase of a personal computer for public school students. The results showed that the program achieved its goals in some ways. That is, the program led to increased computer ownership among voucher winners and a commensurate increase in computer usage. In fact, with 94 percent of those receiving vouchers actually using them to purchase computers, according to the researchers, the program accounted for 4.4 percent of total computer sales in the country during 2005. The program has been further expanded in more recent years.
However, according to the researchers, at best the program resulted in no outcomes benefit to the students at whom the project was targeted; at worst, possibly as a result of students spending less time on homework and more time on non-school-related computer activities, it appears to have led to a decrease in grades among students whose families purchased a computer under the voucher program in the 2005-2006 school year.
According to the research: "We find that children who won a voucher spent significantly less time watching television and [significantly less time] doing homework. Moreover, the effect on homework appears to have had real consequences for school performance. We find evidence indicating that children who won a voucher had lower school grades. Parents reported that these children had a significantly lower expectation of going to college. Finally, we also find suggestive evidence that winning a voucher is associated with negative behavioral outcomes."
