State of Digital Content in America’s Classrooms, 2007-2008 Reveals Current Use of Technology in American K-12 Schools

Denver, CO (May 21, 2008) — American classroom teachers currently use digital content for a small percentage of their classroom time, but teachers would prefer to use technology more often, reports a new study from Quality Education Data, Inc. (QED), a leading education market research and database firm, and a wholly owned subsidiary of Scholastic. QED researched technology trends to collect the most current data on digital content in American schools.

State of Digital Content in America’s Classrooms, 2007-2008, asked educators about the types of digital media that they have access to in their schools and that they use in their every day instruction. The study also asked teachers to identify barriers to technology use in their classrooms and to report the most common technology-based activities in which their students participate.

Key findings include:

• 86% of teachers have desktop computers available in their classrooms; 67% of teachers have access to laptops for their students if they need them; and only 5% of teachers have no access to computers of any kind.
• 9% of teachers spend more than 50% of instructional time using technology, while 16% of report no use of technology during classroom time.
• 85% of teachers report not having enough computers in their classroom as a barrier to using digital content, either always (23%) or sometimes (63%).
• Nearly 95% of teachers use technology to search for free content for use in their classrooms; 36% report that they do so at least three to four times a week.
• 17% of teachers participate in online social networking. Nineteen percent of teachers participate in an online professional community.
• Students of all ages are creating multimedia presentations in school: 58% of high school students, 49% of middle school students, and 22% of elementary school students.

“The findings from the new State of Digital Content report underscore the importance of schools across America making a commitment to providing access to up-to-date, relevant technology for both students and teachers,” said Andy Lacy, President, QED. “Teachers are telling us that they recognize the importance of technology as both a motivator and an instructional tool and as an essential part of a 21st century classroom.”

Methodology
This study was conducted using Quality Education Data’s Online Educator Panel. A random sample of invitations to participate in the survey were sent to panel members. Of those, 1,898 members responded to the invitation, with 1,031 respondents qualifying and participating by the study deadline. Data collection took place November 15 – December 3, 2007.

About QED
Established in 1981 and headquartered in Denver, Colorado, QED® is a leading provider of marketing services for K-12 and higher education businesses. QED provides comprehensive mailing lists, data analytics, market research, and creative services solely for the education market. QED Inc. is a wholly owned subsidiary of Scholastic Inc., the global children's publishing, education and media company. QED's National Education Database™ provides comprehensive access to U.S. and Canadian educational institutions and is the core data resource that supports all QED products and services, including custom education market research, database design and annual research reports tracking critical educational trends. QED publishes the National Registry of Teachers by Names, a database of over 4.3 million educators by name, telephone-verified at the school building level. The Company also publishes The Heller Reports news publications and produces the annual EdNET conference to help education marketers stay current on market trends.

Please visit www.qeddata.com for more information about the 2008 report on Digital Media in American Schools.

Contact
Scholastic Inc.
Sarah Trabucchi
212.343.6424
strabucchi@scholastic.com