Notebook in the classroom- pleasure to learn

Bratislava, Slovakia - The Microsoft Unlimited Potential Group announced findings from a commissioned report by a team of educational research professionals on the benefits of students having one-to-one access to laptops in the classroom. Evaluating two schools that participated in the “Notebook per Every Pupil” project sponsored by Microsoft and Lenovo, researchers from Faculty of Education of Comenius University found that:

• The use of laptops in the classroom increases student’s motivation and fosters a more positive attitude toward studying.
• 88% of Trstená pupils and 40% of Bošany pupils report overall improvement (answered question “Do you think you have improved from the beginning of the project?” by picking one of the two most positive choices on a six degree scale).
• Working with students who have their own laptops increases teacher’s motivation and helps them more efficiently conduct their lessons.
• The use of laptops helps teachers build new, innovative teaching strategies.
• Parent’s satisfaction with their child’s education increases when laptops are introduced in the learning process.
• In self-evaluation test in school success, the rates of pupils from Trstená significantly exceeded other classes in area of confidence and general skills.

These 37 students were compared through the April 2009 with 56 students of the same age and economic background who do not use laptops in the classroom. The study also examines the experience of their parents and teachers. Full results from this study can be found on the new English – language version of the “Notebook per Every Pupil” website launched today: http://www.notebookprekazdehoziaka.sk.

"From the moment the children received their notebooks, our classroom was transformed," said Peter Pallo, a teacher at Základná škola Rudolfa Dilonga primary school in Trstená, Slovakia. "For example, the notebooks are a huge help in getting students excited about learning. They are particularly helpful for children with specific educational needs because the technology allows me more freedom to work with individual students at their own pace."

"Successful education requires constant innovation, creative approaches and hard work on the side of teachers to motivate their pupils. The use of laptops and other technology in classrooms definitely facilitates this by making learning more interesting to pupils and teaching more exciting to educators," said Radomír Masaryk, PhD., head of the research team that prepared the study. "Moreover, incorporation of laptops into elementary education helps pupils develop skills that are very critical in today’s information society - such as researching in the internet, processing large quantities of information from different sources and working with text in general."

The "Notebook per Every Pupil" project is part of Microsoft’s Unlimited Potential commitment to bring relevant, affordable and accessible technology to underserved communities. Through Unlimited Potential, Microsoft is committed to using technology, training and partnerships to transform education, foster local innovation, and enable jobs and opportunities to sustain a continuous cycle of social and economic growth for everyone.

"A core tenet of Microsoft Unlimited Potential is that education is the cornerstone of economic opportunity, and any efforts to help young people realize their full potential must begin there," said Jeremy Gittins, General Manager for Microsoft Unlimited Potential in Central and Eastern Europe. "Together with our partners we are delivering a computing solution to these schoolchildren in Slovakia, and in other regions around the world, that will help them develop the skills they need to excel and create a foundation for a better life."

Note to editors: If you are interested in viewing additional information on Microsoft in Central and Eastern Europe, please visit: http://www.microsoft.com/emea/presscentre/MicrosoftinCEEVPR/default.mspx

If you are interested in more information on Microsoft’s Unlimited Potential initiative, please visit http://www.microsoft.com/unlimitedpotential.

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• Notebook in the classroom- pleasure to learn- New research shows notebooks in the classroom improve the motivation of children in Slovak schools