Student achievement in the area of inquiry learning with the implementation of 1:1 iPads

The purpose of this qualitative study stemmed from the need for a greater understanding of student participation in a inquiry project in a 1:1 environment, and the role of collaboration between classroom teachers and the teacher librarian in the inquiry process. The objective of this study was to examine collaborative instruction and student achievement in the area of inquiry learning, with the implementation of 1:1 devices in the classroom and school library. Data was collected from 27 5th grade student participants through researcher observation notes, teacher-made rubrics, and a focus group. Teacher participant data was collected through researcher observation notes, lesson plans, instructional materials, and a focus group, consisting of one teacher librarian, three classroom teachers, and one technology teacher. Collaboration among the teacher participants allowed for planning and teaching inquiry and technology lessons among the classroom, library class, and technology class. Teacher participants shared the need for more time to plan and guide the inquiry process. Results from data collection showed students felt successful choosing their own inquiry topic and question, and students reported being in favor of using iPads to conduct research and create presentations. Frustrations reported by student and teacher participants included students having difficulty choosing important information from Internet search results. Students revealed difficulties creating presentations on the iPad such as problems with the autocorrect feature, information not saving, inserting images, and changing fonts within applications.