1. From toy to tool:
why tablets in school?
Mart Laanpere
Senior researcher @ Institute of Informatics
head of the Centre for Educational Technology

2. Hopes and fears
• Radio in the school 1927
• Internet ban in Danish school 1996, laptop
ban in TUT 2011
• Why should we try to introduce tablets in
classroom? Three pro’s, three con’s
• Is the teacher who uses tablets in teaching
and learning, better than others?

3. Impact of ICT: the Great Media Debate
• Clark (1983): educational media is merely as “vehicles that deliver
the instruction but do not influence the student achievement any
more than the truck that delivers our groceries causes changes
our nutrition”; it is merely an economic issue by arguing that “if
different media … yield similar learning gains…, then we must
always choose the less expensive way to achieve a learning goal”
• Kozma (1994): “If we move from ‘Do media influence learning?’
to ‘In what ways can we use the capabilities of media to influence
learning for particular students, tasks, and situations?’ we will
both advance the development of our field and contribute to the
improvement of teaching and learning”
• Jonassen (1999a) not “learning from media”but “learning with
technology”

4. Hawkridge (1990) rationales for ICT
• The Social Rationale: the mission of schools is to prepare the citizens of
digital society, who are awareness of, and familiarity with, digital technology.
Those who are not are facing the threat to be excluded and cut of from
various benefits. For that reason, schools have to address the threat of
widening digital divide in the society and demystify computers and network
technologies by making them a normal part of everyday living, working and
learning environment.
• The Vocational Rationale: children should become competent users of
technology in order to be prepared for a career in IT industry, or one in which
computers will be needed (which means virtually the majority of the jobs
tomorrow).
• The Pedagogic Rationale: teaching and learning with computers has various
advantages also from the pedagogical perspective. Hawkridge brings several
examples from the science education here, although there are no subjects
where digital technology would not have a potential to enrich, extend and
improve the practice of teaching and learning.
• The Catalytic Rationale: Schools can be changed for the better with the help
of technology. Technology-inspired innovation in school organisation may
open the door for other types of innovation.

5. Vocabulary reflects the idea
• 1970: computer-based learning
• 1980: computer-assisted learning
• 1990: multimedia learning
• 1995: ICT in learning
• 2000: e-learning
• 2010: learning in the digital age

6. Concept mapping exercise
• Draw a concept map reflecting the key
concepts, characteristics etc related with the
use of tablets in classroom
• Concept map is not mind map:
– Arrows, not just lines
– Labels on arrows (verbs)
– Each triple (concept-relation-concept) can be read
as a proposition