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Having Our Say
Middle Grade Student Perspectives on School, Technologies, and Academic Engagement

The goal of this project is to listen to student's perspectives about school, technologies, and what keeps them academically engaged. We targeted middle-grade students (from sixth, seventh, and eighth grades) in after-school programs across the state. Sixty-three percent of the population received free or reduced-price lunches; eight-five percent scored at or above the state's average on math and reading. Gaining insights into the perceptions of students enrolled in an after-school program is particularly valuable, since technology studies often target the very highest and lowest achieving students.

Data collection involved surveys from 4000 students and follow-up focus groups from the same population from three geographic areas across the state: mountains, central, and coastal. Results were presented at the 2007 annual meeting of the American Educational Research Association in Chicago, IL. To view the research paper, PowerPoint, and the video product reflecting the major themes of the research please click below.

Future Having Our Say studies will expand upon the current research by targeting input from additional stakeholders through multiple avenues of digital communications. Results will contribute to a complex educational landscape as North Carolina works to meet the challenges of the 21st century.

Principle Investigators: Hiller A. Spires, John Lee

Research Team: Kim Turner, Graduate Research Assistant; Janet Johnson, President and Founder, EdStar, Inc.; Lodge McCammopn, Curriculum and Contemporary Media Specialist

Project Media and Resources:
Video product reflecting the major themes of the research: View here.
Research paper developed from this project: View here.
2007 AERA PowerPoint presentation of this project: View here.

Partners:
NC Business Committee for Educucation
NC Partnership for 21st Cent. Skills