In Primary Schools

This chapter begins with recorded experience of applications involving microcomputers (with a passing reference to mainframe computers) and calculators, then goes on to deal briefly with some videodisc and videotex applications. An early stage in computer literacy consists of ‘keyboard literacy’, acquired through playing with the machine, usually with games programs, just to get the feel of the keyboard and screen, and then to learn how to operate the various components. Attempts to assess whether microcomputers actually raise primary schoolchildren’s achievement are rare. Attempts to compare effectiveness of microcomputers with that of conventional teaching are even rarer because of problems of uncontrolled variables. Some controversy surrounds the question of whether such a relatively cheap device as the pocket calculator should be widely used in primary schools. This may seem surprising when we take into account government enthusiasm for much more expensive microcomputers that have yet to show their true versatility in classrooms.