Larry Cuban, 2001
Anyone who applauded Microsoft's offer to settle its class-action lawsuits by donating lots of bargain-priced computer equipment to needy schools would do well to read this timely tome by Stanford's Larry Cuban. He challenges the belief that technology has the power to radically transform schooling. Too often, he says, policymakers, business leaders and philanthropists thrust new electronic gadgetry upon schools, expecting miracles but paying little heed to how educators can employ such devices to improve student learning. Much of the book is devoted to Cuban's study of schools in Silicon Valley, where he found that fewer than ten percent of teachers used their classroom computers even once a week. Even when computers are used, they are not used creatively or for advanced applications. Not surprisingly, they're not doing much to boost pupil achievement. Cuban recommends that teachers be allowed extensive input on goals and implementation, more unstructured time to master the tools themselves, and better technical support and training opportunities. He also recommends "a critical examination of the assumptions of techno-promoters, a return to the historic civic and social mission of schooling in America, and a rebuilding of social capital in our schools." His fundamental argument: Only when we have thoroughly analyzed how we expect technology to achieve our social and educational goals will substantial investment in such technology produce worthy outcomes. The book's ISBN is 0-674-00602-X; you can order a copy at http://www.hup.harvard.edu/catalog/CUBOVE.html. See also a review in this month's issue of Philanthropy at http://philanthropyroundtable.org/magazines/2001/current/fienberg.html.
