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Major new study into classroom tech reveals jarring evidence gap
A major new review by the Digital Futures for Children centre warns that while educational technology has become embedded in classrooms, the evidence needed to understand its wider impact on children has failed to keep pace.
A major new review by the Digital Futures for Children Centre (DFC), a collaboration between the London School of Economics (LSE) and 5Rights Foundation, warns that while educational technology has become embedded in classrooms, the evidence needed to understand its wider impact on children has failed to keep pace.
The review examined 56 bodies of research covering more than 2,100 studies from around the world. While it found that EdTech can improve learning when used well, experts say research has focused overwhelmingly on academic attainment, paying far less attention to its impact on children’s confidence, motivation, or attitude towards learning.
Researchers also found that much of the existing evidence comes from studies conducted in China rather than the UK, leaving important gaps in the evidence for UK schools. Only 16 of the 2,100+ studies included evidence from the UK (fewer than 1%), with much of the existing evidence drawn from experimental rather than real-world educational settings.
The researchers also warn that much of the evidence treats children as a single, homogeneous group, with very little examination of how Edtech affects different children. Only four of the 56 research reviews specifically included children with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND), while almost none explored differences by gender, socio-economic background or other characteristics. As a result, researchers say there is too little evidence to know whether current approaches work equally well for all children.
The findings, which are part of the DFC’s Better EdTech Futures for Children project, come after months of debate about children’s digital lives focused on smartphones and social media. Yet every day, millions of children also use technology in school, raising important questions about whether those products are being held to the same standards of evidence and safety. The report argues that, as schools increasingly rely on digital technology, governments need a broader understanding of what makes EdTech not only effective for learning, but safe, rights-respecting and beneficial for children’s overall development.
In response, 5Rights Foundation has written to the new Education Secretary and her counterparts in the devolved administrations, calling for stronger oversight of educational technology. The letter argues for more research, providing clearer guidance for teachers, and using public procurement to reward products that meet higher standards of quality, safety and children’s rights.
Colette Collins-Walsh, Head of UK Affairs at 5Rights Foundation, said:
“School canteens can’t serve food unless it is proven to be safe and beneficial to children’s healthy development, yet we’ve been introducing digital products into classrooms without holding them to the same standard.
“Children deserve better. It’s time tech had its Turkey Twizzler moment.
“Government now has the chance to build a stronger evidence base, give teachers clearer guidance and use its enormous buying power to reward products that are safe, effective and designed with children’s rights in mind.”
Professor Sonia Livingstone of LSE, one of the world’s leading experts on children’s rights in the digital age, said:
“Much of the evidence on educational technology has focused on whether it improves academic attainment. That’s an important question, but it isn’t the only one. Our review found that while EdTech can support learning, we still know far too little about its wider impact on children’s wellbeing, development and rights.
“As digital technologies become increasingly embedded in education, we need research that reflects the realities of classrooms and considers children’s wellbeing, privacy and rights alongside academic outcomes.”
