Educational Technology – Expectations and Experiences

How Finnish and Swedish Learners’ Academic Self-Control Relates to Time Spent Online in Class, Perceptions of Educator Qualities, and School Appreciation: A Cross-Sectional Comparison

“…This perspective views digital technology as contributing to efficiency in many other domains, so applying it to the school context appears to be a logical next step. For others, the Internet is seen as a potential tool to strengthen learners' creative work using global information sources [26]. Searching for information, as well as interpreting and evaluating multiple sources of information simultaneously, is an important skill in a society in which access to information increases, year after year.…”

“…The possibility of visualizing the dynamic mechanisms involved means that educational computer programs are better able to explain the physical processes than the textbook's step-by-step images of certain stages in the process combined with textual explanations [28]. Digital technology could provide unique opportunities to effectively learn complex academic material involving dynamic attributes [26]. A complementary perspective suggests that learning activities inside schools will offer an adjusted experience if learners cannot use the information tools that actually exist in the world outside of the school [27].…”

“…These countries have also made investments in so-called learning platforms to be used as communication tools between educators and learners, as administrative tools for school management and as instructional resources (for instance, electronic textbooks, educational programs that are incorporated into the learning platforms, etc.). A great deal of research has been performed to investigate how learners use computers in an educational context for academic work [26]. Meanwhile, some studies have revealed darker sides of learners computer use in schools [6], such as the tendency to multi-task and carry out non-academic activities during lessons, for example.…”

“…Vertical knowledge means that each element of knowledge is built upon others, while horizontal knowledge is generally acquired through chosen activities that build immediate, concrete, and contextual knowledge. Desired learning outcomes often call for learners to understand a subject in some depth, meaning that they should discuss, analyse, explain, and otherwise interact with the material [6,26]. These activities demand that learners be mentally active and stretch themselves in the learning process, which in turn requires willpower to sustain the academic self-control needed to carry out these tasks [1].…”

“…Academic self-control thus involves willpower on the part of learners to overcome the impulse to do something more gratifying [1]. However, the ability to exercise willpower is simply a relatively stable disposition, but is also a context-dependent state that the instructional environment can debilitate or strengthen [6,26]. Therefore, how educators shape these learning environments will influence, one way or another, how learners exercise academic self-control.…”