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Laptops and Inspired Writing
Author(s) -
Warschauer Mark,
Arada Kathleen,
Zheng Binbin
Publication year - 2010
Publication title -
journal of adolescent and adult literacy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.73
H-Index - 49
eISSN - 1936-2706
pISSN - 1081-3004
DOI - 10.1598/jaal.54.3.8
Subject(s) - laptop , computer science , software , multimedia , cloud computing , mathematics education , social media , open source , world wide web , pedagogy , psychology , programming language , operating system
Can daily access to laptop computers help students become better writers? Are such programs affordable? Evidence from the Inspired Writing program in Littleton Public Schools, Colorado, USA, provides a resounding yes to both questions. The program employs student netbooks, open‐source software, cloud computing, and social media to help students in grades 5 through 10 develop their skills and identities as writers, all at a total hardware and software cost of less than $280 per student. Students use these tools to learn about diverse genres and write in them for authentic purposes and audiences.