Date of Award

Summer 2023

Document Type

Open Access Dissertation

Department

Educational Studies

First Advisor

Fatih Ari

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of technology integration on third grade social studies students' academic performance and their engagement with the content of map skills at Peony Elementary. The study took place during the Fall of 2022 with 14 third grade social studies students. There is low academic performance and a lack of engagement from elementary students both nationally and locally. This research explored three questions related to the effects of integrating technology on student academic performance and engagement. The first question looks at the impact of integrating technology on third grade students’ academic performance in social studies. The second question examines how technology integration affects third grade students’ engagement with the social studies content about map skills. The third question looks at third grade social studies students’ perceptions about technology integration on the quality of their learning experience. The study incorporated Google Earth, EdPuzzle, Jamboard, and Pear Deck into a third grade social studies class learning about map skills. This action research study collected both quantitative and qualitative data. Quantitative data was collected using student assessments, surveys and exit tickets. Qualitative data was collected using semi-structured interviews and a researcher’s journal. The quantitative data was analyzed using a paired samples t-test to compare the pre and post Map Skills Assessment as well as the Elementary Student Engagement Survey. The Elementary Student Engagement Survey, the Student Technology Perceptions Survey, and the exit tickets were analyzed using descriptive statistics. The qualitative data was analyzed using inductive analysis where coding of the data resulted in themes which emerged. Three themes emerged from the data analysis: 1) technology integration impacted behavioral, cognitive, and emotional engagement, 2) benefits and challenges of technology integration, and 3) the qualities of Google Earth and EdPuzzle on their learning. Findings from this study indicated that integrating technology into a third grade social studies class had a positive effect on students’ academic performance and engagement. The students improved from the pre to the post assessment and were found to be engaged in their learning. The students had positive perceptions about the integration of technology.

Rights

© 2023, Ashley Megregian

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