Visual Educational Research

Teenagers Today

    You know what I love when it is included in research? Visuals of data (hello, active learning!). This week I saw the most amazing moving article whose graphics changed as you scrolled through the reading. The article discusses survey results from parents and teenagers over the question, "Is it harder being a teenager these days and why or why not?" Technology's impact is often at the center of these conversations, with 69% of parents saying it is harder being a teenager these days and pointing at social media specifically for the top reason it is higher. This had me puzzled, are parents not the ones who pay for the technology and could decide how to monitor the usage of? I do know the necessity of needing internet access for studies and to have a basic foundation in technical literacy, but I feel as though the parents are complaining about something they set teenagers up for when they could be guiding and educating their children on healthy technology boundaries.

Value of Technology Use in School

    As mentioned prior, technology is beneficial for studies and can also be an amazing tool that can enhance skills and jump start young individuals to success when used appropriately. In a data brief from 2023, Parents agree with this statement.

image source: Project Tomorrow

    The data goes further on to state which information and media literacy skills parents feel are the most important for their child's future success. The statistic that shocked me the most is only 66-71% of parents found it important for their children to know how to detect bias, censorship, or propaganda. I would hope that number would be closer to 100%. Fake news can have major consequences and in regard to their children's future success, I feel it would be an important skill to have especially for college when working on research papers.

Promise or Peril?

image source Project Tomorrow

    Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a very hot topic right now. The image above is a pie chart of survey results from educators about positive and negative potentials with incorporating AI within education. Underneath the potential promises pie charts on the left, I was surprised that 54% of educators agree that AI can improve academic performance. To me, using AI seems like cheating? Sure, they may get an answer correct or use it to come up with a creative project that does complete the requirement, but is that truly education and deemed as better academic performance? I would love to hear more about teacher's opinion on AI! 

References

Faverio, Michelle. “Why Many Parents and Teens Think It’s Harder Being a Teen Today.” Pew Research Center, Pew Research Center, 27 Aug. 2024, www.pewresearch.org/internet/feature/why-many-parents-and-teens-think-its-harder-being-a-teen-today/.

March 2023. Value of Technology Use in School - Views of K-12 Parents, Teachers, and School Principals. Project Tomorrow. Speak Up Data Findings - Project Tomorrow

2024. Promise or Peril? Emerging Views on the Potential Value of Ai within K-12 Education. [infographic] OneDrive (sharepoint.com) Project Tomorrow.