LEARNING WITH PORTABLE COMPUTERS

This paper provides an overview of the main findings of the Pupils' Le arning and Access to Information Technology (PLAIT) project, a project designed to investigate the impact of using portable computers on pup ils' learning. The research was undertaken in nine schools with 235 pu pils each having full-time ownership of a personal portable computer o ver one school year. The evaluation involved quantitative and qualitat ive methods and the findings are reported under two main headings: the potential of portables for enhancing learning and issues related to o perationalizing their use. The results suggest that U.K. curriculum de sign encourages separation of process-based learning from content-base d learning and is militating against the potential for information tec hnology to impact on pupils' learning.