Student and teacher views of the internet

Abstract

We surveyed a sample of three hundred secondary school students (ages from 11-16) to investigate their internet access, use and perceived competence. The relationship between students' perceived and actual competence was explored through a series of experimental information finding tasks. We asked a sample of sixty teachers from the same schools their views of pupils' use and competence in using the internet. We found large differences between student and teacher perceptions of students' skill and use of the internet. This suggests that teachers' perceptions and knowledge of computing may be a signifi cant, in discouraging girls from studying computing subjects.