Does the 2.0 Classroom Improve Students' Engagement in Learning?

Does anyone have any evidence that the 2.0 classroom improves the level of engagement in learning? I have heaps of anecdotal evidence and some small scale surveys with parents and students which is pretty overwhelming, but can anyone point me in the direction of studies which;
-Show clear evidence that online/ interactive/ web 2.0 connected learning has improved student engagement in learning
-Suggest that deep thinking and active engagement is not affected
-Suggest engagement is reduced or limited?

Tags: data, engagement, learning, studies

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I can give an example of how social engagement has increased. My classes use edmodo.com to collaborate with one another outside of school. If a student has a question on homework for example they post the question at edmodo, and then it sends the question to all students in the class via tweet, text message or e-mail. It has worked out well as students are always connected to each other.
I think this social engagement is leading to increased collaboration; collaborative learners and the use of technology that makes collaboration more simple are encouraged in our school. Your combination of technologies/ tools is intriguing- something I'm going to investigate further! Thanks, Tom.
Hello all - this is such an IMPORTANT topic and I applaud those of you who are gathering evidence to confirm, expand usage in schools. We know kids love it, we love it, yet we know we have to prove it due to the significant costs involved. Resources such as time, training, hardware, band width, etc. are limited. Issues like privacy and security are also important which is why teachers must work up front to structure learning opportunities well.

Teachers are the critical link to ensure relevant meaningful learning occurs while using new technologies. For example: a student sitting in front of a screen does not automatically translate into lasting learning!

Since web 2.0 is only going to expand in our daily lives, one question I wonder about involves the tipping point for usage and student motivation/engagement and/or student results. How much technology usage do students "need" to make significant gains? Keep in mind that engagement does not guarantee learning AND in today's world is an important precursor to learning. It ultimately depends on how it is framed, taught, and led by teachers.

Here is a lit review I wrote a few years back as I tried to uncover some quantifiable evidence to support increased levels of student engagement. Maybe you will find something useful.
Attachments:
Read Grown up digital by Dan Tapscott...lots of info in it related to this subject.
Can't forget James Paul Gee (at the University Wisconsin Madison) brilliant!
If you're speaking strictly about engagement, then I think anecdotal evidence is all you will ever get. How can you scientifically measure interest?

One thing I'm learning about Web 2.0 and the children of today is that getting them excited/interested is half the battle. We have to compete against a lot of other more interesting past times ( video games, sports, the web in general, etc.) the kids could be spending their time on.

I can do a whole lot more with kids that are interested than kids that aren't, so if web 2.0 can give me that leg up, I'll take it whether or not there is a study that says it's true.
Absolutely agree- I know that children who are using methods and means that interest, engage and challenge them are far more excited and involved in learning than others. However, given the same curriculum, learning intentions, time spent etc, I'm sure there are measures that show (or don't) academic gains in one group as opposed to another. If I can't find it, I'm going to have to find a way of finding out!
yes, the research I found indicates all sorts of measurable behaviors like attendance, time spent on tasks, scores/grades, depth and frequency of interactions etc. There are myriad ways to measure engagement!
This semester I had my students use a wiki to help them write about the book they were reading "The Tipping Point". We used Literature Circles , http://www.abcteach.com/free/l/literaturecircle.pdf, and the responsibilities associated with them.The class I am teaching is English for Academic Purposes Reading. I knew that it would take up a lot of time in the classroom to discuss the book and have everyone give their contributions. The students were required to post their jobs on the wiki. The discussions took place in the classroom. I found that the engagement by the students increased.
Carol this sounds fantastic; two great strategies rolled into one, brilliant!! I have also seen kids in HS write on each others blogs in British Lit, class which is so interesting thinking about how hundreds of years separate the text styles.... such creativity!
I believe student engagement depends on task design.

I agree that web 2.0 is only a "vehicle".
I find that it depends on the novelty of the task or tool. The great thing about all these Web 2.0 tools seems to be that it's so new. Just look at PowerPoint presentations. I don't think too many people get all excited about PowerPoint anymore...but I remember when we first started using it. We were in awe with the presentation, not necessaryily what we were learning. However, I teach inner city children who have very little exposure to technology outside of school so anytime the word computer is mentioned they get excited. Even the most reluctant learners are willing to try almost anything if it's presented through technology.

I agree that it would be scientifically difficult to measure interest.

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