Tablet PCs, academic results and educational inequalities

This article is the result of a study carried out in 2008 and 2009 by a team from the Autonomous University of Barcelona in order to evaluate the implementation of the Digital Whiteboard Program in public schools in the region of Aragón (Spain).The following pages present some of the results obtained during the study. More specifically, this article considers results relating to the relationships between this expansive program of ICT use in public primary schools in the Autonomous Community of Aragón and its impact on the socioeducational inequalities that affect learning processes. To this end, we begin with a review of some studies carried out in this field at the international level, highlighting the most relevant evidence shown until today. Within the empirical framework, we utilise various information-gathering techniques – both quantitative and qualitative – such as questionnaires and discussion groups. The statistical analyses and findings are based on the views that different groups (head teachers, teachers, students and families) have on the questions posed. Thus, indirect but concrete evidence is provided by the various actors involved in the teaching–learning process, where a high level of agreement is often observed.The results of this study show that there are significant differences in students’ academic results according to first order social variables (e.g., gender, birthplace), where students with the worst academic results and those coming from families with less favored socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds are the most favored by the program.