Effects of Computer Use on Mathematics Achievement. Findings from a Nationwide Field Experiment in Grades Five to Eight. Classes: Rationale, Study Design, and Aggregate Effect Sizes. Report No. 51.

Since the mid-1980's, computers in elementary and middle grade schools have functioned to a large extent as a medium for student practice in the skills and concepts of basic mathematics and logic. This report presents the results of a 2-year nationwide field experiment designed to provide credible evidence about the effects of using computers in mathematics instruction in grades five through eight. Ninety-six classes (48 pairs of "computer" and "traditional" classes) taught by 56 teachers in 31 schools from 25 districts in 16 states participated in the first year of the study; 11 teachers from 9 schools employed the same "teacher-control" design through the second year of the experiment. In 73% of the pairs of classes, the same teacher taught both the "traditional" and "computer" classes. Twenty-three of the 31 schools used Apple II series software, 9 used IBM software, 1 used Texas Instruments cartridge software, and 1 school used networked Radio Shack TRS-80 hardware and software. Most classes used the computers for drill-and-practice programs, and several used problem-solving tasks built into programs. On the average, students spent 36 hours during the school year on computer-based mathematics activities. Results from analysis of pre- and post-test results indicate that the overall effect sizes found at the end of the first year on five measures of mathematics achievement were not substantially above zero for the study populations a whole, except for the estimations subtest. Selected posttests are appended. (4 tables/figures) (MDH)