The impact of an iPad-supported annotation and sharing technology on university students' learning

Wakefield, J; Frawley, JK; Tyler, J; Dyson, LE

The impact of an iPad-supported annotation and sharing technology on university students' learning

Wakefield, J

Frawley, JK Tyler, J Dyson, LE

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Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Computers and Education, 2018, 122 pp. 243 - 259
Issue Date:: 2018-07-01

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Wakefield, J https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7269-0141	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Frawley, JK	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Tyler, J	en_US
dc.contributor.author	Dyson, LE	en_US
dc.date.available	2021-08-12T19:01:07Z
dc.date.issued	2018-07-01	en_US
dc.identifier.citation	Computers and Education, 2018, 122 pp. 243 - 259	en_US
dc.identifier.issn	0360-1315	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/130478
dc.description.abstract	© 2018 Elsevier Ltd iPads, or more generally tablet computers, have received rapid and widespread uptake across higher education. Despite this, there is limited evidence of how their use affects student learning within this context. This study focuses on the use of a tablet by the instructor to support the annotation and in-class sharing of students' work to create a collaborative learning environment within a first year undergraduate subject. This paper reports the results of an empirical study looking at the effect this tablet technology has on student performance using a sample of 741 first-year accounting students. The study uses data from enrolment and attendance records, end of semester examination results and student perceptions from a survey. Results indicate that class sharing of the instructor's and students' annotation of homework through the use of a tablet is associated with an improvement in student performance on procedural or equation-based questions as well as increased student engagement. However, contrary to expectations, the introduction of in class annotations was associated with a decline in student performance on theoretical, extended response questions. The authors argue that affordances of the tablet, when used in a student-centred way, can introduce a bias towards some kinds of interactions over others. This large-scale study of in-class tablet use suggests that though the tablets may be positively associated with student engagement and satisfaction, caution must be exercised in how the use by the instructor affects the classroom environment and what students learn. These findings have particular relevance to university learning contexts with equation-centric subjects such as those in Business and STEM.	en_US
dc.relation.ispartof	Computers and Education	en_US
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1016/j.compedu.2018.03.013	en_US
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/embargoedAccess
dc.subject.classification	Education	en_US
dc.title	The impact of an iPad-supported annotation and sharing technology on university students' learning	en_US
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	122	en_US
utslib.for	1303 Specialist Studies in Education	en_US
utslib.for	1301 Education Systems	en_US
utslib.for	1302 Curriculum and Pedagogy	en_US
pubs.embargo.period	Not known	en_US
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Business/Accounting Discipline
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Computer Science
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Strength - HCTD - Human Centred Technology Design
utslib.copyright.status	open_access	*
pubs.publication-status	Published	en_US
pubs.volume	122	en_US

Abstract:

© 2018 Elsevier Ltd iPads, or more generally tablet computers, have received rapid and widespread uptake across higher education. Despite this, there is limited evidence of how their use affects student learning within this context. This study focuses on the use of a tablet by the instructor to support the annotation and in-class sharing of students' work to create a collaborative learning environment within a first year undergraduate subject. This paper reports the results of an empirical study looking at the effect this tablet technology has on student performance using a sample of 741 first-year accounting students. The study uses data from enrolment and attendance records, end of semester examination results and student perceptions from a survey. Results indicate that class sharing of the instructor's and students' annotation of homework through the use of a tablet is associated with an improvement in student performance on procedural or equation-based questions as well as increased student engagement. However, contrary to expectations, the introduction of in class annotations was associated with a decline in student performance on theoretical, extended response questions. The authors argue that affordances of the tablet, when used in a student-centred way, can introduce a bias towards some kinds of interactions over others. This large-scale study of in-class tablet use suggests that though the tablets may be positively associated with student engagement and satisfaction, caution must be exercised in how the use by the instructor affects the classroom environment and what students learn. These findings have particular relevance to university learning contexts with equation-centric subjects such as those in Business and STEM.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/130478