Abstract

This article discusses which factors should be considered in deciding how the Internet should be brought into primary and secondary schools. Based on a fiveyear study of the adoption of Internet use in a large urban school district in the United States, the paper outlines four factors which are likely to have a strong impact on the amount of use that is made of Internet access and on how such access influences educational processes and outcomes. These factors are: (i) the cost of present-day Internet access compared with other resources and delayed access; (ii) the need for substantial amounts of technological and pedagogical support for Internet-using teachers; (iii) the alignment between the norms of the school system, the community in which it is embedded and those of the Internet; and (iv) the alignment between existing educational goals, pedagogical approaches and assessment systems and the Internet's potential educational uses.

How to Cite:

Schofield, J. W., (2003) “Factors to Weigh When Bringing the Internet to Schools”, Wales Journal of Education 12(1), 15-25.