How Do Parents Feel About Technology in the Classroom?

Communicator
May 2013, Volume 36, Issue 9

Mobile technology has become ubiquitous in children’s lives, and schools have tried to keep up. Twenty-five percent of students carry a smartphone with them to school every day, and 17 percent of schools now require the use of mobile or portable devices in the classroom. Students and many educators are already on board with mobile technology—but what do parents think about their children learning math on a smartphone?

A new report, “Living and Learning with Mobile Devices,” released by the Learning First Alliance and Grunwald Associates, with the support of AT&T, explores parents’ perceptions of mobile devices for early childhood and K-12 education. Its authors argue that parents’ perceptions are particularly important if schools plan on integrating mobile technology into the classroom.

The authors find that although many parents have reservations about this technology in the classroom, 71 percent admit that mobile devices create opportunities their kids wouldn’t have otherwise.

More details can be found in the full report, but the results have also been visualized in this useful graphic.

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