Some key findings include:
- 90% of children use their home computers at least once a week for educational reasons – the same percentage as those who use a school computer for study. But 40% of children use their home computers for study every day, more than the 30% that use computers daily at school.
- Despite the obvious generation gap, when it comes to familiarity with computers, almost all parents surveyed (97%) believe computers have at least some value for their child’s learning and 40% see it describe it as ‘crucial’
- 99% of parents enjoy using a computer, with 20% classing it as their own favourite pastime. However 58% of parents are worried about what their children are doing on the internet and 63% recognise they need to improve their knowledge to help supervise activities online. Nearly a half of the men asked think that the IT knowledge gap between themselves and their children is harmful to their learning development, compared to a third of women asked.
- Younger parents, despite typically having greater levels of expertise and knowledge of IT and the internet in fact worry more about their children online. (64% of under 34s with children compared to only 43% of over 55s)
- Children from higher household income families (£50k+) are using computers for study marginally more than the less well off (81% compared to 72%) and less well off parents actually worry more about the internet (70% of parents with household income of less than £20k worry what their children are doing online compared to 51% of those who have a household income over £50k) This again is likely to come back to a lack of knowledge – increased parental awareness and engagement needs to happen at all levels, regardless of income or age
There seems to be a common misconception that children only use their computers at home to play games or connect to social networks. However, the research suggests that instead the connection gap between the home PC and schoolwork comes not from students but from the parents. The culture of learning is changing – kids are on board and being motivated by learning through technology at home. Parents need to keep up!
Some stats that support this include:
- More parents have a facebook account than their children (73% next to 60% )
- 51% have used internet from their mobile (suggesting they are comfortable/regular users)
- 77% of parents said they played computer games by themselves as opposed to with their children (only 39%)
“Due to the way that children are using PCs, there is an increasing blurring between learning-time and leisure-time and so computers in the home are becoming as important as those in the classroom,” said Fleming. “The way that students are consuming information and engaging with each other and their teachers is constantly changing, as is the way that they learn and are motivated. There is a need for parents as well as teachers to adapt to this changing behaviour through the use of technology and programmes like Home Access. Getting parents who aren’t on board, with the right skill-set to support and engage with their children effectively at home, is essential.”
“Microsoft fully supports the Government’s Home Access Programme and welcomes the recognition that parents, students and teachers all have a part to play in education. We are confident that Microsoft’s technologies will play a large part in this process and can help make home access a reality for all,” added Fleming.
http://blogs.msdn.com/ukschools
