This presentation explore why there is a stronger correlation between educational performance and frequency of computer use at home than at school. More information here: http://people.oii.ox.ac.uk/cobo

1. What means “invisible”
http://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/british/invisible
a) Public Policy EU Agenda
- Lisbon Strategy
- Digital Agenda 2020
b) Evidence based policy.
- Previous research
- Impact of ICT in learning
c) Evidence Based Data for Policy
d) Second Digital Divide
e) Where is the invisibility? Cristóbal Cobo,
Oxford Internet Institue
November 2010

2. The Public Policies

3. Europe since the Lisbon
European Council of 2000.
The European Framework for Key Competences for Lifelong Learning
identifies key competences necessary for an active citizenship, social
inclusion and employability in a knowledge society:
1. communication in the mother tongue;
2. communication in foreign languages;
3. mathematical competence and basic competences in science and
technology;
4. digital competence;
5. learning to learn;
6. social and civic competences;
7. sense of initiative and entrepreneurship;
8. cultural awareness and expression.
The Commission will continue to
promote the development and
exchange of good practices on media
literacy in the digital environment
through existing programmes and
initiatives... (EU Commision, 2007 +)
Council of the European Union, Brussels,
Official Journal of the European Union
(May 2009) Education and training 2020.
A first challenge is to promote the acquisition
by all citizens of transversal key competences
such as digital competence, learning to learn,
a sense of initiative and entrepreneurship,

5. Evidence Based Data for Policy

6. Former chair of Becta’s Board,
“Technology is like a golden
thread that runs through the
college. It impacts on
everything we do, from
teaching and learning...”

7. Primary schools, computer ratio is 7:1. Secondary: 3:1.
Harnessing Technology Schools Survey: 2010 +Harnessing Technology schools survey 2007 +
“Nearly all primary and secondary schools
reported having access to desktop computers,
laptops and interactive whiteboards”.
Access

8. [ access/use of ICT self-learning & informal acquisition e-skills ]
Source: “Digital Literacy European Commission
Working Paper and Recommendations
from Digital Literacy High-Level Expert Group” (+).
[Ministerial e-Inclusion Conference, 2008].
Korte & Hüsing (2006) Benchmarking Access and Use of ICT in European Schools
Source: Eurostat Survey on ICT usage in household and by individuals
Ways of acquiring computer and Internet skillsICT availability and use in class:
"Half Empty or Half Full?"

9. “The results show no evidence that Internet
investment had any measurable effect on
student achievement”
Goolsbee, A. & Guryan, J. (2005) The Impact of
Internet Subsidies in Public Schools. U.of Chicago
“Increasing levels of computers access does
not bring about more learning experiences”.
International Association for the Evaluation of
Educational Achievement (2006). IEA SITES
“There is no consistent relationship between
the mere availability or use of ICT and student
learning”.
The World Bank (2005) Monitoring &
Evaluation of ICT in Education Projects.
“Computers in classroom have been oversold
by promotors and policymakers and
underused by teachers and students”.
Cuban, L. (2001) Oversold and Underused:
Computers in the Classroom. Cambridge,
MA: Harvard University Press.
“Connecting schools to the Internet, providing
courseware and access to digital resources,
and training teachers have not brought about
the pedagogical innovations”
Rosado and Bélisle (2006). Analysing
Digital Literacy Frameworks. A EU
Framework for Digital Literacy.
“Use of ICT in education and training has been
a priority in most European countries over the
past decade, but progress has been patchy”.
European Commission (2008). The
Education and Training Contribution to
the Lisbon Strategy.

10. The use of ICT to support innovation and lifelong learning for all - A
report on progress. Commission Staff Working Document (10.2008)
The impact of ICT on education and training
has not yet been as great as had been
expected despite wide political and social
endorsement. In particular, the
transformation of business and public
services through ICT has not yet reached
teaching and learning processes...

11. OECD (2006). Are Students Ready for a Technology-
Rich World?: What PISA Studies Tell Us. Paris: OECD.
1. Governments have pursued policies to increase equity of access to
computers at school, while the proportion of homes with computers has
also grown.
2. The PISA evidence confirms previous studies showing the particularly
strong association of performance with home access and usage.
3. “The more clear-cut effect appears with home use: in every country,
students reporting rare or no use of computers at home score much
lower than their counterparts”.
4. “[T]he key issue raised here is the comparatively low performance among
those without home computers.”
5. Only a minority of students reported frequent use of specific educational
software....
Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA):
90% World Econ. 60 countries, 5~50K students per country.

12. OECD (2008). New Millennium Learners. Initial findings on the
effects of digital technologies on school-age learners. OECD/CERI.
1. In the school sector, the rhythm of investments in technology,
intended to facilitate its adoption, has generally been impressive in
OECD countries.
2. “The impact of computer availability at home upon academic
attainment is clearly higher, in most countries”.
3. “A second digital divide emerges: it is no longer about access, but
about differences in use”.
4. “Despite thousands of studies about the impact of technology use on
student attainment [...] there is no conclusive evidence about the
benefits of technology in school performance”.

13. 1. Perhaps, as the PISA 2006 data partially show, one of the limitations of
many educational ICT policies is that most countries have not
developed holistic policies for educational use of ICT.
2. There is evidence of a second “digital divide” emerging [...] between
those students who have the skills to benefit from computer use and
those who don’t. Although the data do not prove a causal connection
between familiarity with computers and performance, they show that
better-performing students are more familiar with computers.
3. Frequency of computer use at home makes more of a difference in
performance on the PISA tests than frequency of computer use at
school.
4. In the particular case of school use more computer use does not mean
having better results in subject-based standardized tests such as PISA
2006.
OECD (2010) Educational Research and Innovation: Are the
New Millennium Learners Making the Grade?: Technology
Use and Educational Performance in PISA 2006.

14. a. The use of ICT to support innovation and lifelong learning for all - A report on progress. Commission Staff Working Document (10.2008).
b. Francesc Pedró. Is technology use related to educational performance? Evidence from PISA
OECD Centre for Educational Research and Innovation (CERI)
non-evident aspects
1. One of ICT's main strengths is its capacity to support informal
learning. Self-learning and informal peer-learning are by far the
two most important mechanisms for obtaining skills and
competences (EU, 2008 a).
2. Students using computers at home are likely to be more
interested in ICT, have more scope for experimental and self-
learning, and can search and discover the resources that are
best suited to their needs (OECD, 2010).
3. ICT familiarity matters for educational performance: higher
performers have a lengthier experience of computer use, also
when accounted for ESCS differences (OECD, 2010 b).

15. The use of the Internet for informal
learning increased significantly. In
2009, 91% checked a fact online
(82% in 2007), 90% investigated
topics of personal interest (78% in
2007) and 71% looked for the
definition of a word (56% in 2007).
Students were the most
frequent producers of online
content.
Most students worked on
their social networking sites
on a weekly basis.
Data from the 2009 surveys: download the OxIS 2009 Report (PDF). http://microsites.oii.ox.ac.uk/oxis/

16. Second Digital Divide

17. A second digital divide separates those with competences and skills to
benefit from computer use from those who do not. This competencies
are closely linked to students’ economic, cultural and social capital
(2010).

18. Hard (academic-professionals) &
Soft ‘tacit’ skills (people or social skills)
Project
management
Read / Write
Deal with
Complexity
Informatics Drive
Self
Confident
Critical
thinking
collaboration
Leadership Teamwork
Fulfill
Protocols
...
Time
Management
Foreign
language
Distance
Work
Responsible
Decision-
making
Innovative
Creative Communicative
Business
Skills
Work
interdisciplinary
Apply
Knowledge
Achieve
Standards
Deal with
Uncertainty
Persuasive
Influencing
Problem
Solving
Cooperative
Adaptable
http://www.tuning.unideusto.org

19. Where is the invisibility?

20. as part of their everyday lives
"Half Empty or Half Full?"
1. Invisible limits of the time/space of
learning
2. Unknown type of use of the computer at
home (“peer learning”)
3. Invisible e-competencies
4. Invisible strategies to transfer tacit
knowledge/skills.
5. Unclear influence of the environment in
the use of the ICT
“The stronger a person’s educational background the more likely they
are to feel confident in their ICT skills and use the Internet for learning
activities, specifically fact checking and training and learning”.
Helsper, Ellen Johanna and Eynon, Rebecca (2009) 'Digital natives: where is the evidence?',
British Educational Research Journal, 36:3, 503 - 520, First published on: 17 June 2009 (iFirst)
“New millennium learners may be digital natives
but are not by definition effective learners”
(Lifelong Learning Programme 2011+)

21. Policy implications:
1. To raise awareness among
educators, parents and policy
makers of the consequences of
increasing ICT familiarity.
2. To identify and foster the
development of 21st century
skills and competences.
3. To address the second digital
divide.
4. To adopt holistic approaches to
ICT in education.
“lifelong learning should be regarded as a
fundamental principle underpinning the
entire framework, which is designed to cover
learning in all contexts — whether formal,
non-formal or informal — and at all levels”.
Council of the European Union, Brussels,
Official Journal of the European Union (May
2009) Education and training 2020.
• ICT by itself can not be consider
(anymore) a driving force in
education.
• The results show the need for
more micro-studies.
• This call for stronger links
between school-works and what
students do at home.
In-conclusions

22. 1. The vast majority of employees are already
expected to have ICT skills of some kind, ranging
from basic ICT skills and ability to use technology
based devices, such as handheld devices for meter
readings or stock-taking, to advanced ICT and e-
business skills.
2. The demand for basic ICT skills is decreasing over
the period is only because employers will
increasingly expect the workforce to have more
advanced ICT skills instead.
Kolding; Robinson y Ahorlu. (2009).
Post Crisis: e-Skills Are Needed
to Drive Europe's Innovation Society
(commissioned by Microsoft). IDC.
http://www.microsoft.eu/LinkClick.aspx?fileticket=bQQeH2nAaF8%3D&tabid=60