Potential Adverse Effects Of The 'One Computer Tablet Per Child' Policy: Thai Opinion

[webfact]

Potential Adverse Effects of the 'One Tablet per Child' Policy

By The Nation

The Pheu Thai government's policy of giving "one tablet pc to every student" in school1 has been widely discussed in terms of both the financial cost to the country and its impact on the young recipients. The prevailing view is not to rush into the implementation of the project, without a careful study of its impact on student performance in school.

New research carried out by my colleague Dr. Jirawat Pampiemas and me in a quasiexperimental evaluation shows the potentially adverse impact on the academic performance of Thai students using computers, as measured by the OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) of mathematics and science scores.

Our sample consists of a nationally representative sample of 6,192 fifteen yearold Thai students from the PISA 2006 survey.

We specified three welldefined types of computer usage or treatment as follows:

(i) frequent usage for only educational purposes (such as using educational software, spreadsheet, or browsing the internet for information about people, things, or ideas - 945, (ii) frequent usage only for entertainment purposes (as in playing games, or downloading games and music - 351), and (iii) frequent usage for both (i) and (ii) above 1,473. Our control group (iv) comprises the remaining 3,423 students who reported occasional or zero use for these purposes.

Having clearly defined the treatment and control conditions, we proceeded to estimate the average impact on test scores of the three treatments relative to the control outcome.

As is standard for this type of research design, the test score impact estimates were adjusted for betweengroup differences in the personal factors of the children, such as their family income, their parents' educational attainments and occupations, as well as the type of school they attended, their class sizes, studentteacher ratio, and teacher qualifications.

In effect, the students in the four groups described above were statistically adjusted to make them compatible with the stated observable dimensions for meaningful comparisons to be made.

Our results show strong evidence that differences in the impacts of computer use result from the type of usage.

We find that playing computer games frequently results in an average negative effect of about 16 points for science and 11 points for mathematics.

To put it another way; for a median student these are equivalent to around a 10 percentile drop in science and a 6 percentile drop in mathematics in the national ability distributions. In contrast, we find that using computers for educational purposes has small, but positive effects on student performance (between one to two points for both subjects). The impact estimates are also not statistically significant.

Our evaluation results for Thailand are very much in line with international evidence showing the impact of computer use on student achievement. These findings should raise serious concerns over the appropriateness of the Government's "one tablet per child" policy, especially when our data suggests that a large proportion of students regularly use computers for entertainment purposes.

Clearly, the 'one tablet pc per child' policy should not be rushed through if we are to protect the integrity of our education system. Computers can be an invaluable aid to education if used constructively.

The least the Government should do is to embark on evaluation studies on the effectiveness of the tablets and the accompanying educational software and, if necessary, begin with a pilot project. Hasty mass distribution of tablet pcs could cause untold harm to our Thai education system which needs improving in any number of ways.

1 The government has prepared a threebillion baht budget for the 2012 fiscal year for the initial phase of the policy. Implementation will begin with the handing out of tablet pcs to every student attending Grade 1.

Dilaka Lathapipat, PhD

Thailand Development Research Institute

-- The Nation 2011-09-12

[aussiebebe]

It's bewildering to think the government can afford three billion baht for tablets for all grade 1 students when there are so many other areas of need. If the aim of tablets is just to give students access to educational web content a much better solution would be smart boards for each classroom. These look like large whiteboards and require a computer and projector to display content with special pens to work on the screen for the whole class to see. Taking a standard PC to be B10,000 and an interactive smart board system with projector to be B120,000, the same money could potentially equip over 23,000 classrooms and take away the danger of misuse of tablets by students.

[AbdulJabaar01]

Older teachers in Government schools will not accept this. Seeing most of them using those Thai type writers, much like my grandmothers mother would use.

Edited September 12, 2011 by AbdulJabaar01

[hkt83100]

My prediction is that the tablets will have a lifespan of about 3 months until they are broken, gone down the toilet, eaten by a buffalo, or simply exchanged at a shop for a mobile phone.

[siampolee]

Remember of course the agencies that supply " English teachers" to Thai government schools. Many of those "teachers' are basically illiterate regarding teaching English and indeed the use of modern technology Those agencies will indeed fight tooth and nail alongside the academic dinosaurs to hinder the plan.

The plan on my view is a total scam aimed at lining the pockets of assorted interested parties as rewards for their backing of the P.T.P. ( Personal Thaksin Party )

The whole education system needs a total overhaul to move away from indoctrination to education. Crazy rules dating back 50 plus years covering the hair on a students head are not needed, What is important is what is in the students head not what is on it.

The fact is that lip service is paid to education. The powers that be and have been view education as a dangerous tool in the hands of the general population as it leads to a more erudite population who will start asking questions as to what is going on, why and for whose benefit..

[comeondoit]

It's bewildering to think the government can afford three billion baht for tablets for all grade 1 students when there are so many other areas of need. If the aim of tablets is just to give students access to educational web content a much better solution would be smart boards for each classroom. These look like large whiteboards and require a computer and projector to display content with special pens to work on the screen for the whole class to see. Taking a standard PC to be B10,000 and an interactive smart board system with projector to be B120,000, the same money could potentially equip over 23,000 classrooms and take away the danger of misuse of tablets by students.

there should be done more to educate the teachers...they have no idea to deal with problems in class and among students. i know of some children (14 to 15 y) here in the isan, they do not go to school anymore...teacher slapping or humiliating.

and look at the classrooms, our daughter was having no desk to work on for some months...too many students, and so on

computers are not replacing the lack of wanting to learn things and the lack of general enhancement for the students

and what is more important they are not helping to learn to think, and do not forget with compis counts only "scrap in ...is scrap out".

in thai classes learning by heart is the thing...learning how to think is just for the ones who have a little more brain than the rest and do it for themselves, but basically learning to think is not allowed, the teacher is allmighty and cannot be questioned. what would happen if the kids would learn to think? more teachers would start slapping and humiliating around because they never learnt how to deal with such kids.

hope some people in the governement start to think instead of dicussing about and with unqualified red shirts oficials now having a nice salary and a big office and access to tea money.

i love thailand and its people and the children are the future...do something about it...but not with compis...that is the same thing as throwing money out of the windows.

[animatic]

If the system is fundamentally broken, providing a 'new tool' won't make the tool suddenly be used properly and magically fix the system. If a symptom of the broken system is that the main parts, AKA Teachers are so change adverse as to hate the idea of the tablets, then there is no chance they will be properly used. Add to that the implied fact that needing to train the teachers more, implies to them they arte stupid, so they lose face and fight the training all the more. Use the 3 billion baht to repair the school culture and systems.

[virtualtraveller]

Interesting analysis, though it won't change a thing. The main reason so many are criticising this program is because it's a classic example of 'populism' as championed by Thaksin. You're throwing lots of scarce public funding at something that is essentially a vote buying gimmick! Sure you can describe it as visionary and potentially effective but not in a developing country that desperately needs to channel its money and effort into an education overhaul, as Animatic points out, it's a pointless exercise if the whole learning system in this country is fundamentally flawed.

They will plough on with it to fulfil their promises to all those poor households where something as simple as an oversized mobile phone impresses the hell out of them, when sadly none of them realise who shortchanged their pratom 1 students are in terms of their future earning ability.

Someone, somewhere in the supply chain, is going to make a lot of money. I question why it is P1 students who will be the recipients, when P6 students would probably get far more effective use out of them. All my 6 year old knows how to do is push the screen in the places that makes the games work.

[timekeeper]

one of the adverse effects will be that prices of these type of computers will plummet

pawn shops will be full of them........

[scorecard]

It's bewildering to think the government can afford three billion baht for tablets for all grade 1 students when there are so many other areas of need. If the aim of tablets is just to give students access to educational web content a much better solution would be smart boards for each classroom. These look like large whiteboards and require a computer and projector to display content with special pens to work on the screen for the whole class to see. Taking a standard PC to be B10,000 and an interactive smart board system with projector to be B120,000, the same money could potentially equip over 23,000 classrooms and take away the danger of misuse of tablets by students.

There's also the need for retraining of teachers, however 'aussiebebe's' makes a good point. These boards, if the teacher knows how to use them, are great teaching aids, but they don't replace the teacher. Never!

[hammered]

Its a potential nightmare for those involved in the annual book selection, production and procurement programs

[robsamui]

Thai people just LOVE putting the cart before the horse. It's encoded into their jeans.

My thinking is that it helps to pass the time afterwards - gives them a reason to justify their administrative existance

R

[tlansford]

No one can think of a positive impact?

Looks like TDRI is a business-funded, conservative think-tank style of organization. It would not be logical to expect them to go wild over a policy like this.

On the other hand, it is admirable to try to measure the potential impact on education. But there is something that no study can gage which is the broader impact on Thai society.

At the very least, such a program is going to drive computer literacy - and not just among the kids.

More importantly, when a tool like this is distributed on a huge scale, there will be many ripple effects. The above study looks at the micro-effect, but not the macro-effect. So far I have not seen any report on this possibility. THAT would be interesting. The potential positive impacts of distributing the tools could be magnitudes larger than the impact of the tool on student learning.

If every Thai kid has a computing tool in their hands, that will impact parents & families everywhere in Thailand, especially outside the large cities where this technology is less available. It will potentially change rapidly how information is distributed, consumed and used. It will potentially change rapidly the services available to Thais through the internet. There are many areas which could be significantly impacted in a relatively short period of time.

Among other things, this would create some interesting business opportunities for some creative Thai companies and entrepreneurs (that is meant seriously - don't bother taking off on the "line-your-pockets" or "tablet repair shop" kind of comments, please).

Potentially, the implementation of this program could have a much larger impact on the Thai society than on Thai primary education.

My personal view is that to impact education, you need to invest in several areas, teachers, methods, materials, and parent/children communication/involvement. This proposal covers both methods and materials.

[katasyd]

I'll be buying one at a pawn shop a week after the roll them out.

[timekeeper]

I'll be buying one at a pawn shop a week after the roll them out.

you and thousands of others...........

[zzaa09]

If the system is fundamentally broken, providing a 'new tool' won't make the tool suddenly be used properly and magically fix the system. If a symptom of the broken system is that the main parts, AKA Teachers are so change adverse as to hate the idea of the tablets, then there is no chance they will be properly used. Add to that the implied fact that needing to train the teachers more, implies to them they arte stupid, so they lose face and fight the training all the more. Use the 3 billion baht to repair the school culture and systems.

Adding, that the system infrastructure is so inherently suppressed - why bother with going through the motions just for the sake?

[jimbeam1]

It is just another election promise to break. Like the 300bt minimum wage, was never going to happen. Just my own opinion.

jb1

[Bakseedaa]

My prediction is that the tablets will have a lifespan of about 3 months until they are broken, gone down the toilet, eaten by a buffalo, or simply exchanged at a shop for a mobile phone.

[rubl]

...

My personal view is that to impact education, you need to invest in several areas, teachers, methods, materials, and parent/children communication/involvement. This proposal covers both methods and materials.

You list four areas to be invested in and continue with 'proposal covers both (methods/materials)'.

I think a few areas are missing and you'd better say 'proposal covers ONLY two'. Even that I'm not convinced is true. Till now the 'policy' of given 1st graders a tablet is still being fleshed out. Budget for books and clothes included in tablet budget, possibly parents to choose what they want (not saying they'll get), infrastructure still vary unclear, how to include use of tablets in teaching program to be defined. All ready by next year of course. Let's hope so, no tablet and no books makes for an interesting new teaching approach

[Livinginexile]

Interesting analysis, though it won't change a thing. The main reason so many are criticising this program is because it's a classic example of 'populism' as championed by Thaksin. You're throwing lots of scarce public funding at something that is essentially a vote buying gimmick! Sure you can describe it as visionary and potentially effective but not in a developing country that desperately needs to channel its money and effort into an education overhaul, as Animatic points out, it's a pointless exercise if the whole learning system in this country is fundamentally flawed.

They will plough on with it to fulfil their promises to all those poor households where something as simple as an oversized mobile phone impresses the hell out of them, when sadly none of them realise who shortchanged their pratom 1 students are in terms of their future earning ability.

Someone, somewhere in the supply chain, is going to make a lot of money. I question why it is P1 students who will be the recipients, when P6 students would probably get far more effective use out of them. All my 6 year old knows how to do is push the screen in the places that makes the games work.

Well said!

I like this line... "if we are to protect the integrity of our education system"

They're having a laugh right?

[elgato]

Thai people just LOVE putting the cart before the horse. It's encoded into their jeans.

My thinking is that it helps to pass the time afterwards - gives them a reason to justify their administrative existance

R

Don't you mean putting the cart before the khwai?

By jeans, you mean Levis of course.

Edited September 13, 2011 by elgato