NAEP Validity Studies: Computer Use and Its Relation to Academic Achievement in Mathematics, Reading and Writing

摘要

The purpose of this study is to examine patterns of computer use in U.S. schools and the relation of computer use to academic achievement in mathematics, reading and writing. In this report, we first discuss methodological issues. We then present the results of analyses of the social distribution of computer use. Next, we turn to the relation of computer use to achievement. Finally, we present recommendations for future research and possible changes in NAEP. This research is based on evidence from NAEP. We make use of the 1996 main assessment in mathematics and the 1998 main assessments in reading and writing. NAEP is the most extensive and valid source of data on what fourth-, eighth-, and twelfth-grade students in the United States know and are able to do. Therefore, NAEP is well suited to describing the patterns of achievement in the U.S.