Children of the 21st century are digital learners and have various technologies at their fingertips. As a result, classrooms have evolved and school systems are equipping students and teachers with the technological tools that are believed to meet the needs of 21st century learners. However, researchers say there is still a need to examine students\ and teachers' perceptions of, and attitudes about, technology and its use in the classroom (Maninger & Holden, 2009). There has also been a growing interest in knowing if the investment of the technology is having any positive effects in the classroom, what effect technology has on academic progress, and understanding what teachers and students think about the implementation and integration of technology in the classroom as an instructional tool. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of middle school teachers and students, in a select rural Virginia middle school, on the effect that one-to-one computing had on the frequency and type of instruction that is taking place in the core areas of English, math, science, and social studies.  The study also looked at the teachers' and students' perceived effect on the educational performance of individual subgroups. A quantitative analysis was done using an electronic survey, which provided information on the perceived frequency and type of educational activities using one-to-one computers and the perceived effect one-to-one computing had on the educational performance of different subgroups. Questions on the survey were developed by correlating the theoretical ideas of Bloom's taxonomy / Bloom's web 2.0 technology pyramids and then categorizing the questions so the complexity of the questions could be looked at on the range of use chart. The research found, of the students surveyed, 90% of English students, 78% of math students, 75% of science students, and 77% of social studies students found the computers to have a positive effect on their academic performance. Therefore, one major finding of this study was that students' perceptions of the overall effect of one-to-one computers were positive. / Ed. D.

This research described and analyzed teachers’ perceptions of technology as a catalyst for stimulating classroom constructivist practices. The teachers were located at multiple schools in one Florida county. The teachers were selected based on participation in the Education through Dynamic Global Experiences (EDGE) program. This One-to- One program provides one laptop for every classroom teacher and student. The most frequent ideas in the literature fell into three sections. First is the need to integrate technology as part of the curricula and use constructivism as a theoretical framework for technology integration. The second relates to the best practices of incorporating classroom technology driven by constructivist theory and Self-Regulated Learning (SRL). The third describes one county’s EDGE program and related literature. Two focus groups gathered information from teachers with various levels of classroom and EDGE experience regarding perceptions of a One-to-One classroom. Teachers were surveyed regarding perceptions of processes of using technology as a catalyst for constructivist practices, changing teaching and learning, teaching style, and curriculum content delivery. Conclusion: Data collected from teacher surveys and focus groups support the premise that “Elementary teacher’s perceptions of technology as a catalyst for constructivist practices in the classroom” is valid. This conclusion was demonstrated by evaluating teacher perceptions, patterns of experiences, and the emergence of constructivist instructional practices when technology is infused in the curriculum. The major recurring themes supported a constructivist culture that was: collaborative and independent, receptive to individuals and valued their relationships, replete with opportunities for distributed leadership, interconnected with integrated technology, populated with highly engaged and motivated individuals, self-sustaining, safe and nonjudgmental, vision driven, built on authentic assessment and curriculum, and evolving at the speed of technology. Implications follow: 1. Technology can be used as a catalyst for classroom constructivist practices 2. Teachers believe that technology supports increasing standardized test scores. 3. Training in constructivism promotes use of technology by teachers and speeds changing teaching pedagogy into constructivist practices. 4. Teachers’ perceptions are important in changing pedagogy toward constructivism. 5. School administration must support classroom technology and constructivist teaching 6. Students and teachers can collaborate in designing, developing, and implementing their learning experiences and students can actually take control of their learning experiences.