Running head: QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 1

Qualitative Case Study Research Proposal:

What are the major characteristics, both structural and pedagogical, of classrooms that have

implemented a “bring your own device” environment at the secondary level in the Surrey, BC

School District, and can they be replicated on a wide-scale basis?

Jonathan Nilson

95651148

ETEC500-65D

UBC

Dr. Oksana Bartosh

April 10th, 2015

QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 2

Introduction

This proposal for a qualitative case study is centred on exploring how different teachers and

schools have been able to create a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) classroom environment, and

whether the various means by which BYOD was implemented can either be copied or adapted to

other classrooms and schools. My interest in the issue is a product of my experience over the last

five years as a technology facilitator in a British Columbia secondary school, where I have

supported and assisted teachers as they sought to develop technology integrated lesson and units,

while dealing with the limited availability of school-owned, shared technology resources.

Relevance of BYOD

The BC Ministry of Education has recently sought to significantly promote the integration of a

variety of technologies and digital communication competencies across the curricular spectrum.

This reflects the need to develop and utilize student digital communication, information

acquisition and creation skills, while taking advantage of the opportunity presented by

technology for personalized learning and student output. This is most recently exemplified by the

2012 BC Education Plan where it is stated that “Students will have more opportunity to develop

the competencies needed to use current and emerging technologies effectively, both in school

and in life.” (BC Ministry of Education, 2012, p.7)

However, despite this emphasis on increasing digital literacy and communication competencies,

the availability of school-based technology and shared-resources remains limited. This is partly

the result of budgets dedicated to supporting technology and other educational necessities being

cut or set at levels that at best maintain the status quo (Barham, 2015). While the examples above
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are specific to British Columbia, similar issues are faced in many other education systems in

North America, with schools struggling to adapt to the evolving digital landscape with education

budgets that remain based upon more traditional education systems. With little budget relief on

the horizon for many education systems, an alternative paradigm to increase the availability and

opportunity to use technology is needed.

While by no means universal, student owned technology, whether in the form of smart phones,

tablets, laptop/notebook computers and other forms of smart devices is a growing presence

within the secondary school system. By taking advantage of this presence, welcoming it into the

classroom, encouraging other students to bring their own devices, and developing policies

around its use, a new opportunity for a technology integrated classroom is created. Of note, this

integrated environment does not directly tap into school funds or dominate the use of shared

resources such as computer labs or mobile carts of I-Pads. Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)

environments offer the opportunity to have schools move away from being the sole providers of

technology for in school use, and instead focus on the structures necessary to support student

owned technology.

Although the benefits of increasing the availability of devices for student learning are obvious,

there are obstacles that make the implementation of a BYOD environment difficult. Yet despite

these impediments, some teachers have been successful in creating a BYOD classroom. By

studying these teachers and classrooms, identifying those elements that allowed them to

implement and determining which of these elements can be replicated in other classrooms, than

other schools seeking to implement BYOD environments of their own can have their process

expedited.
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 4

Literature Review

The implementation of a BYOD policy is predicated on the demonstrated educational benefits of

regular access to technology, whether in the form of computers, tablets, mobile smart phones or

other smart devices. The studies supporting these benefits are wide-ranging, including the

positive impact of specific devices, the effects on individual student achievement versus

collaborative learning and the means by which technology can bridge the gap between formal

and informal learning. However despite these benefits, recent publications have shown that

technology access is not increasing in many school districts, due to either frozen or cut budgets.

BYOD offers an alternative to school delivered technology access, if obstacles to

implementation can be overcome.

Benefits of technology access/integration

Several studies have explored the effect of laptop and notebook computer use on standardized

test scores when used by students in a 1:1 ratio. At the elementary level, US grade 4 and 5

students who were given 24/7 access to a laptops demonstrated significantly improved language

arts, math and science scores over students who did not have 24/7 access (Kposowa & Valdez,

2013, p.372). A similar study on graduating Australian high school students indicated those who

were provided laptops for school use via a government program three years prior demonstrated

significantly higher scores on their externally administered final exams in chemistry, biology and

physics than those who did not receive laptops (Crook, Sharma & Wilson, 2015, p.288).

In addition to improving individual academic scores, laptops available to students on 1:1 basis

have been demonstrated to improve student collaboration, resource sharing and classroom

engagement (Keengwe, Schnellert & Mills, 2011, pp 143-144). Improvements in these areas
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 5

have also been attributed to the use tablet computers, such tablet PC’s and I-Pads, with evidence

in one study indicating even greater improvements to students group work performance:

While students from both classes were able to demonstrate their skills in using computers
to search appropriate information from the Internet, the TabletPC class exhibited high
competence in using technology to enhance intra-group and inter-group collaboration...
Because of this high connectivity and the capability of co-construction supported by
technology, each student’s role, participation and contribution within a group were on a
more equal footing as compared to the pattern of collaboration found in the non-TabletPC
class. (Li, Pow, Wong & Fung, 2010, p179)

The educational opportunities provided by mobile devices, whether smart phones, ipod touches,

or equivalent have also received growing attention. This is both due to their ubiquity and the

comfort students have in using their mobile devices to acquire, exchange and communicate

information outside the traditional academic setting. The bridging of the gap between formal and

informal learning environments, where students are provided the continuous opportunity to learn

regardless of context while utilizing the same tools is often referred to as seamless learning, and

is of particular interest to mobile device in the classroom advocates (Chan et al, 2006, p23).

Budgetary impediments to technology access

Despite the research that supports the educational benefits of 1:1 access to computing devices, a

2011 report from the Boston Consulting Group determined that technology spending in school

systems across the globe remains woefully behind the spending priorities of other areas and does

not come close to the percentages of funding set aside by other services and industries that

technology impacts (Bailey et al, 2011, p.5). This does not even take into account those school

systems which are facing significant budget cutbacks who are struggling to find means to
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 6

provide students access to and learning opportunities with technology that has real-world

applicability. (Hill, 2011, p.22).

BYOD as a possible solution

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) provides a possible solution to limited technology access as a

product of schools being the sole provider of devices for use within the education system. In a

recent technology position paper on BYOD, published by the province of Alberta’s ministry of

education, student ownership or access to personal technology is considered to be near

ubiquitous in many regions, with students often owning multiple computing or web accessing

devices. Furthermore, students are considered already familiar with their personal devices,

especially with the information gathering, creation and sharing that makes up much of their

everyday social interaction and informal learning practices. Most relevant to cash strapped

school districts, however, is the tendency of students to acquire for themselves the most current,

advanced technology available. Rather than a never ending game of catch-up, as they replace

worn-out shared computer resources, schools and districts can focus their limited funds on

building network infrastructure to improve internet access and invest in high-end equipment and

applications that is beyond the means of the average student. (Alberta Education, 2014, p.1)

This is not to say there are no impediments to the development of a BYOD environment in the

average school. Issues can range from a current lack of infrastructure, especially in regards to

wireless network access, to family economic iniquities limiting technology ownership. Teacher

preparedness for a BYOD classroom is also of concern, with many educators unfamiliar with the

variety of computing devices available or lacking the pedagogical training to take advantage of

the opportunities presented by the devices. (Alberta Education, 2014, p.2)

QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 7

Research Method

Research questions

My research question developed as a product of my own frustration, as I sought to assist teachers

with maximizing their access to technology. My role as a tech facilitator in the Surrey, BC

school district includes assisting teachers in exploring the use of technology in the classroom

while developing units and lesson plans that can maximize the benefits of integrating technology.

However, these efforts are often stymied due to the limited availability of computer lab space,

and the popularity of a small number of laptop and I-Pad carts, where the devices are distributed

in groups of 30. While attempts have been made by teachers I work with to experiment with

BYOD, these efforts have experienced many of the same impediments discussed previously.

Furthermore, what success we have experienced has tended to grow organically from the unique

circumstances of each classroom and teacher. While we are able to anecdotally discuss what we

feel has worked in our school, there has been little attempt to systematically document those

elements that have successfully enabled BYOD, nor compare them to the experiences of other

teachers in different schools. As such, each group that tries to implement BYOD are at risk of

facing the same set of obstacles and pitfalls as those who have gone before, as they have been

unable to fully benefit from those previous BYOD experiences.

To overcome the impediments, both foreseen and unforeseen, that limit the implementation of

BYOD on a wider scale, I will observe and document the practices and circumstances of

classrooms that have successfully implemented BYOD. I will then systematically identify those

characteristics that are not unique to those particular classrooms, to determine if they are

applicable to others. As such, the initial guiding question for my proposed qualitative case study
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 8

is: What are the major characteristics, both structural and pedagogical, of classrooms that have

implemented a “bring your own device” environment at the secondary level in the Surrey, BC

School District, and can they be replicated on a wide-scale basis?

Choice of Methodology

As I will be observing and analyzing the processes by which BYOD was successfully

implemented in a set number of classrooms I will use a qualitative case study design. This will

allow the most effective collection of detailed descriptive and heuristic data on how the concept

of BYOD was initially introduced and then managed on a daily basis.

Participants

Participants will consist of teachers and students in six grade 10-12 BYOD classrooms, in three

separate schools in the Surrey, BC school district (BC SD36). I chose the Surrey school district

due to the existence of district-wide infrastructure that supports BYOD, including all elementary

and secondary schools having easy to access student WIFI, and designated tech facilitator staff at

each school whose role is to support initiatives such as BYOD.

For the purposes of this study, and to ensure clarity and consistency, the definition of a

successfully implemented BYOD environment would combine the more common articulation of

BYOD, “...technology models where students and staff bring a personally owned device to

school for the purpose of learning.” (Alberta Education, 2014, p1), with the 1:1 student to device

ratio advocated in much of the supporting literature, along with the regular opportunity to use the

devices. Such a definition would read: A successfully implemented BYOD environment consists

of 1:1 student to device ratio, in which the bulk of the technology is student owned, and the

opportunity to use the devices occurs multiple times per week.

QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 9

Participants will be selected from a minimum of three secondary schools in order to gauge the

possible influence of local administrative policies on BYOD. Further, since the Surrey school

district encompasses a number of significantly different socio-economic zones, the inclusion of

three schools will allow the impact of economic disparity to be taken into account.

Inclusion of six classes will provide enough flexibility to include a variety of courses, both

academic and elective, and to determine whether curriculum has some influence on BYOD

implementation. Further, if equally divided between the three schools, it will provide the

opportunity to observe and compare the role of relationships between classroom teachers,

support staff and local administrators on BYOD implementation. In my experience student

ownership of personal devices plateaus at the grade 10-12 level due to parental perceptions of

maturity, responsibility and age-appropriateness.

Participant selection will be based upon BYOD teachers who volunteer to be a part of the study,

and who meet the above mentioned criteria. Initial contact will be via the twenty-four Surrey

Secondary School’s tech facilitators and their existing communication network, as these

individuals can assist in the identification of possible BYOD classrooms and teachers. E-mails

and follow-up phone contact will be used to create a database of potential participants.

The number of volunteers will be narrowed based upon the following criteria:

1) Is there another BYOD classroom present in the same school?

2) Is the subject of the class represented at the school or in the study?

3) Does the school serve a socio-economic community not yet represented in the study?

When there is more than one volunteer per category, random selection will be used to determine

the participant.
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 10

Ethical Considerations

As students would likely be observed and spoken to during this study, confidentiality will be of

particular concern. As one of the possible impediments to BYOD implementation is socio-

economic disparity, this opens the door to potential embarrassment or ridicule of students who

are unable to purchase their own devices. Maintaining confidentiality would alleviate some of

this concern. Additionally, informed consent would required from all participants, whether

teachers, administrators or students and their guardians.

Procedures

This case study is intended to take place over the length of an entire high-school course, to

identify both initial and evolving characteristics that make BYOD successful. It will utilize on-

line questionnaires, both at the beginning and end of the course, observations of classroom

activities using both video and notes, and audio-recorded interviews of teachers, students and

school administrators.

Instruments and materials

Surveys/questionnaires are to act as both an entrance and an exit to the study, and are intended

for the classroom teacher. The initial questionnaire will be used to determine both the existing

infrastructure at the school that supports BYOD as well as what classroom policies and

procedures are in place to deal with expected BYOD obstacles. Further, the initial questionnaire

will help identify the personal characteristics of the teacher that supported a BYOD environment,

including specific training and general attitude towards technology and innovation in education.
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 11

The exit survey is intended to help identify changes or adjustments that took place, either to deal

with emerging obstacles or to improve BYOD capabilities. Again, the survey will focus on

policies, procedures, staff development and infrastructure upgrades.

Google Survey will be utilized for both questionnaires. This is due the ease with which data can

be confidentially shared utilizing Google Survey and the commonality of Google Docs and other

services as a tool in the BYOD classroom.

A minimum of three observations per class will take place, with the initial observation using the

responses of the opening questionnaire to provide some guiding areas of focus. Issues relating to

BYOD supportive pedagogy, practices that take into account multiple device formats and general

technology troubleshooting will be of particular early interest. Hand written notes will be taken,

both for observations and to note down questions for subsequent interviews. The class will also

be video recorded for later review, to identify anything that was overlooked or may have been

occurring when the observer’s attention was directed elsewhere.

Interviews will primarily function as a follow up to observations, and will be used to provide

clarity or extra details to items of particular note. Teaching staff will be interviewed shortly after

each observation, as will three students from each class. Student interviews will be focused more

on their BYOD experience, including issues they found frustrating or felt enriched their learning

experience. Teacher interviews will centre around process, including what practices they found

successful or required modification. Additionally, at least one principal or vice-principal at each

of the schools involved in the study will be interviewed once to discuss to the administrative

policies, both current and future, that enable BYOD implementation. All interviews will be

audio-recorded for later review.

QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 12

TABLE 1: SUMMARY OF COLLECTION TECHNIQUES AND DATA TO BE COLLECTED

Collection Technique Data Type Details
This data will be used to help
Initial statistical data about the classroom (such set the stage of the first
as course, number of students, etc), the teacher observations and is indicative
Online Surveys/
(such as training in and attitudes towards of what the teacher and
Questionnaires (first)
technology) and the school (including available administration consider to be
infrastructure and support) necessary to initiate BYOD
implementation.
Handwritten notes will be used
for unobtrusive data collection,
in such areas as 1:1 student
Hand-written notes Specific classroom observations
teacher interactions or to
record specific observer
thoughts.
Recordings of the class from a
Video recordings General classroom observations broad perspective for later
review and data collection
Audio recorded for later
review. Used to expand and
Audio recordings Teacher, student and administrator interviews
clarify observational notes, and
for feedback.
This data will be used to help
End of class statistical data, specifically any
Online Surveys/ determine how teachers and
changes that may have occurred since the first
Questionnaires (final) administration responded to
questionnaire.
emerging obstacles
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 13

Data Analysis

The data collected will be used to help identify those characteristics that have enabled the

classrooms that are part of the study to implement BYOD. The breadth of the participants will

help determine whether characteristics are specific to certain teachers, classes, subject areas or

school environments, or whether they can be found in multiple BYOD environments. Further,

the breadth of the participants, as well as multiple data collection types, will allow for the

triangulation of data, and potentially the determination of each characteristic’s relative

importance in creating a BYOD classroom. Finally, the identified characteristics will be

categorized utilizing a simple rubric (Table 2) developed to determine whether they are

replicable, with a secondary purpose of identifying whether they are a product of infrastructure

and material support, pedagogical practice, teacher training or some other factor.

TABLE 2: RUBRIC FOR CLASSIFYING AND DETERMINING REPLICABILITY OF

CHARACTERISTICS

Classification () Replicable? (Y/N)

Infrastructure or
Material Support

Training or Prof.

Multiple Classes
Development
Pedagogical

Present in
Technical

Characteristic Explanation
Other

Eg 1: School wide WiFi with

sufficient bandwidth to allow
  Y None
multiple classes simultaneous
access to the internet.
Personality
Eg 2: An extremely personable cannot be a
teacher who maintains a positive factor in
  N
outlook regardless of problems determining
and arising issues. BYOD
implementation.
Schedule
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 14

The schedule of research activities will vary depending on whether the schools/classes being

studied are part of a linear or semester based system, as they are intended to take place over the

duration of the course. One week prior to the course starting, teaching staff will be issued the

initial questionnaires. Observations will be scheduled to take place at regular intervals, with the

first as close to the beginning of the school year or semester as possible to collect data on issues

relating to BYOD start-up. The second observations will occur mid-course, once students have

become comfortable with the BYOD concept. Final observations will take place near course end,

when classroom participants have theoretically mastered the classroom’s BYOD practices.

Interviews will occur no later than 48 hours after each of the observations to ensure that the

details remain fresh in the mind of the parties, but also to provide enough time to review and

make notes on the recorded video footage. Final questionnaires will be issued and collected one

week after the completion of the course.

Discussion

It is expected that the data collected from this case study will allow the identification of

characteristics that are either replicable factors that can be applied in schools or classrooms that

have not yet implemented BYOD or non-replicable, unique qualities, that are specific to the

particular environment or individuals that were observed. From the replicable factors, a road map

can be determined that, while not able to prevent all wrong turns, will ensure a reasonable chance

of success for BYOD implementation within the Surrey school district, as well as other districts

who have similar polices and circumstances. Further, by sub-dividing the characteristics into

categories relating to infrastructure and material support, pedagogy or technical

training/development, school support teams and administrators can better focus their resources

on what is needed to prepare staff and students for BYOD.

QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 15

On a larger scale, by easing the implementation of BYOD, this study can play a local role in

assisting technology to deliver some of the benefits it has long promised, but has been unable to

meet due to budget cutbacks and the inability of schools to provide for all their students’

technological needs. BYOD is a natural partner to 1:1 student to device use and the seamless

learning model. It has been shown that by enabling students to utilize in the classroom the

devices they informally learn with on a daily basis that we are also encouraging greater student

engagement, participation, collaboration and achievement. Finally, budgets that were originally

dedicated to providing and maintaining class sets of devices can be redirected to areas to support

BYOD or provide high end devices and software for student enrichment.
QUALITATIVE CASE STUDY RESEARCH PROPOSAL 16

Works Cited

Alberta Education, School Technology Branch (2014). Technology Briefing: Bring Your Own
Device. Received from http://education.alberta.ca/media/8640236/tech-briefing-byod.pdf

Bailey, A., Henry, T., McBride, L. & Puckett, J. (2011). BCG Report: Unleashing the Potential
of Technology in Education. Boston Consulting Group. Retrieved from https://www.
bcg.com/documents/file82603.pdf

Bramham, D (2015, February 23rd). Why aren’t the liberals defending public education? The
Vancouver Sun. Retrieved from http://www.vancouversun.com

BC Ministry of Education (2012). BC’s Education Plan. Retrieved from

www.bcedplan.ca/assets/pdf/bc_edu_plan.pdf

Chan, T., Roschelle, J., Hsi, S., Kinshuk, K., Sharples, M., Brown, T., . . . Hoppe, U. (2006).
One-to-one technology-enhanced learning: An opportunity for global research
collaboration. Research and Practice in Technology Enhanced Learning, 1(1), 3-29.
Retrieved from https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-00190632/document

Crook, S.J., Sharma, M.J., & Wilson, R. (2015). An Evaluation of the Impact of 1:1 Laptops on
Student Attainment in Senior High School Sciences. International Journal of Science
Education, 37(2), 272-293. DOI: 10.1080/09500693.2014.982229

Hill, R. A. (2011). Mobile digital devices: Dipping your toes in technological waters. Teacher
Librarian, 39(1), 22-26. Retrieved from http://search.proquest.com.ezproxy.library.
ubc.ca/docview/902627624?accountid=14656

Keengwe, J., Schnellert G. & Mills, C. (2011). Laptop initiative: Impact on instructional
technology integration and student learning. Education and Information Technologies,
17(2), 137-146. Doi: 10.1007/s10639-010-9150-8

Kposowa, A. J., & Valdez, A. D. (2013). Student Laptop Use and Scores on Standardized Tests.
Journal Of Educational Computing Research, 48(3), 345-379. doi:10.2190/EC.48.3.d

Li, S.C., Pow, J.W.C, Wong, E.M.L., & Fung, A.C.W. (2010). Empowering student learning
through TabletPCs: A case study. Education and Information Technologies, 15(3), 171-
180. doi: 10.1007/s10639-009-9103-2