Activities and dynamics with tablets in an Elementary School in Spain

Abstract

The permanent evolution of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) goes hand in hand with the generalization, relocation and globalization of the worldwide movement, as well as in favor of using these resources in different areas, including education. However, the development of experiences and researches about the use of tablets in classroom continues to be scarce in contexts where, in addition to other factors, there are difficulties to access or obtain the technology. Therefore, this case study aims to know the typology of activities related to the use of tablets, in the context of Elementary School and the resulting dynamics with the pupils of three classes of 1st, 3rd, and 5th grades (aged 6 through 11 years old) of an educational center located in Northwest Spain. This work is part of a qualitative research based on ethnographic-narrative approach; data collection utilized the observation technique and discussion groups. The results and conclusions show that the practices with tablets are episodic and influenced by the activities associated with traditional teaching. However, the researchers were able to detect some innovative dynamics based on the very tools provided by such devices, originating different indagating, ludic activities. On the other hand, the results point to small group work pattern (mainly in pairs) as the one mostly used when tablets are employed in the classroom.