ESRI research on effects of broadband in primary and post-primary schools in Ireland

Seán LyonsPresentation to INDIE, 3 March 2015

ESRI Programme of Research in Communications Research programme in its sixth year Part-funded by DCENR and ComReg Current research topics include

Identifying and measuring effects of broadband in primary and post-primary schools

Examining the effect of government-supported infrastructures on inward investment and on local competition in telecoms

Modelling the retail market for broadband service

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(A) Broadband for Primary Schools Mixed evidence from international research on effects of

broadband on student performance in primary schools DoES capital expenditure on ICT for schools was about

€13m between 2005 and 2008. “Broadband for Schools”“The Schools ICT Programme supports high quality teaching and learning and feeds into building a knowledge economy.” (DoES Capital Investment Programme 2012–2016.)

Quasi-experiment possible since initial programme overlapped with GUI data collection period

Questions:1. Was the internet used more in primary school

classrooms that received broadband for schools investment?

2. Do children in classes where the internet is used have higher academic performance?

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Research questions

Step 1 Hypothesis: better broadband service increases use of

internet in schools, possibly with a lag Thus probability of observing internet use in the classroom

will be positively affected by broadband availability, and this effect may increase with time since BB delivered

Other factors may affect probability of internet use too, e.g. BB quality (+), density of computers in school (+) and quality of computing facilities (+)

Step 2 Hypothesis: internet use in classroom improves academic

performance Other possible confounding factors such as child’s

socioeconomic background, home computer use, gender and home reading need to be incorporated

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Method and results

Econometric models estimated on linked data from Growing up in Ireland and DES

Having had Broadband for Schools service for at least 2 years was associated with more than doubling of classroom internet use

Classroom internet use associated with 8% higher reading test logit score and 13% higher maths test logit score Scale of maths model coefficient roughly equal to primary carer

getting degree rather than Leaving Cert No robust associations found with broadband speed or technology Expected associations with household income, parental education,

social class, intellectual disability Paper with Mary Silles (Hull U) and Richard Layte (TCD) forthcoming

in Economic & Social Review

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(B) Effect of 100Mb/s broadband in post-primary schools

Government has just completed implementation of a programme to install 100 Mbit/s broadband to post-primaries

Programme was developed to support various information society and educational objectives

In particular, expected to contribute to teaching and learning by supporting more and better use of ICT

Future development of ICT in education can be assisted by assessing measures such as this

Technical and qualitative studies provide some information, but there is also a role for rigorous quantitative evidence

By collecting structured data before and after rollout, effects can be quantified

ESRI working with DCENR, DES and PDST to do quantitative and mixed methods assessments

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Methodology and data

Overall Goal: identify and measure effects on teaching and learning of having better broadband connectivity

Also allow for other possible influences such as socioeconomic conditions

Sample: 436 post-primary schools in Ireland Sources:

Surveys of principals and teachers Interviews/focus groups in case study schools Administrative data

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Survey component

Two groups of schools: (Group 1, 2013) Dublin, Kildare, Meath and (Group 2, 2014) Wexford, Waterford, Cork, Kerry, Kilkenny, Limerick

2 surveys: Principal Survey Teacher Survey [English, Maths, Science/Biology]

Completion online or hard copy Background/demographic information ICT infrastructure in school Use of ICT E-learning plan Challenges re. internet Teaching approaches ICT-related skills Student engagement

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Mixed Methods Research

Qualitative Phase: In-depth interviews with a nationwide sample of (c.10) schools

covering opinions towards the benefits and barriers of ICT use in school since the installation of 100Mb broadband.

Interviews include people from every level of the school:

They provide detailed opinions on topics such as:

Principals Teachers

ICT Co-ordinators Students (Junior + Senior Cycle)

Benefits of ICT Barriers to ICT Digital Identity Teacher Training

Home-School Connectivity

ICT and School Ethos

Junior-Senior Cycle

Role of ICT Co-ordinator

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Administrative Data

Broadband speed before programme implemented and content filtering level applied

Socioeconomic background etc. of areas (ESRI) Administrative Data on second-level schools:

DEIS status School size School type (secondary, vocational, community/

comprehensive) Gender mix

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Broadband speeds before programme

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Attitudes Towards ICT

Vast majority of principals and teachers recognise the value of ICT: Value of computers/internet in teaching and learning ICT has changed the way teachers teach ICT is an important tool

Perceived Impact on student learning: Can enhance student participation Can enhance collaboration among students Assists in developing independent learning Positively impacts on student achievement

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Principals’ Views

High impact Significant Impact

Low Impact I don't foresee any notable

impact

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Expected Impact of High Speed Broadband on Teaching and Learning (Principals)

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Principals’ Views

strongly agree

agree neither agree/

disagree

disagree strongly disagree

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

Teachers Recognise the Value of Com-puters/Internet in Teaching and Learning

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Current ICT Usage

Teachers use curriculum-relevant online resources for lesson preparation

In total: 74% frequently/always Greater in DEIS schools

Teachers use ICT to support a range of student learning styles

In total: 56% frequently/always Greater in Group 1 (Dublin area) schools

Students use ICT in classroom In total: 28% frequently/always in teachers’ main

subject Communicating with students/parents via email,

publishing students’ work online, using social networks in class, collaborate with other teachers and experts in other locations etc. don’t feature significantly

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Perceived Barriers

Internet availability/broadband (speed) Resources/equipment availability

Maintenance also a prominent concern (42% dissatisfied) Technical support; issue in a majority of schools (62%

consider technical support inadequate) Bigger concern in Group 2 (rural schools)

Teacher skills and confidence Principals: 54% insufficient ICT skills among teachers acts as

barrier to ICT usage 78% of teachers rate their ICT knowledge in main subject as

good or very good

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Principals’ Views

strongly agree

agree neither agree/

disagree

disagree strongly disagree

0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

Lack of Confidence among Teachers Using the Internet is a Barrier

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Teachers’ Views

strongly agree

agree neither agree/

disagree

disagree strongly disagree

0

10

20

30

40

50

60

I am Confident in Using the Internet to Meet Teaching Goals

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Composite Measures

Many factors in the survey give correlated results To allow for analysis of latent factors underlying these

answers, we carry out a factor analysis A range of composite factors is constructed, including

Use of ICT to support teaching Use of ICT to support individualised learning Sufficient resources, equipment? Sufficient skills, confidence? Internet availability? Sufficient tech support?

We then use regression analysis to see how use of ICT is associated with other factors and school characteristics

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Some early findings…

Across all schools vast majority are positive about the value and potential of ICT in teaching and learning Group 2 (rural) schools greater expectations re. student impact

More use in preparing lessons than in teaching/learning Teacher training positive assoc. with usage

Some variation in perceived barriers Differences across school contexts Positive role of planning and whole school approach

e-learning plans associated with greater ICT usage and more positive views of ICT value, supporting teaching and supporting learning diversity

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Next steps Mixed methods study in progress Post-installation wave of survey (Q2 2015) Analyse and write up results (Q3-Q4 2015) Present and publish results Future work

In education: Focus on remaining barriers? Primary school teaching and learning?

Other: Interested in collaborating on field experiments to measure effects of ICT on households and firms

Contacts: Seán Lyons, sean.lyons@esri.ie (telecoms markets, broadband

adoption, effects); Selina McCoy, selina.mccoy@esri.ie (education) 21

Annex: School Profiles DEIS status: 28% DEIS

School Type: 23% girls’ secondary 17% boys’ secondary 16% coed secondary 33% vocational 10% community/comprehensive

School Size: 31% 600+ students 31% 400-599 students 29% 200-399 students 10% less than 200 students

E-Learning Plan: 41% of schools Connection speed: 18% connection speed lower than

10Mbps prior to broadband rollout