Just released: A Common Sense Census

Common Sense Media just released a major study that will be of interest to any educator interested in understanding how kids actually use technology.  The results make fabulous fodder for faculty discussion.  It may help guide decision making in addressing instruction and issues of equity.

The large scale study, Media Use by Teens and Tweens offers a comprehensive picture of the use of media by kids, age 8 to 18 in the U.S., including the level of enjoyment, frequency of use, and amount of time devoted to a wide array of media activities and devices.

Highlights of the research are compiled on this infographic and in Michael Robb’s Graphite blog post.

Among the major findings are some no-brainers.  Kids love media. They watch television everywhere. They use multiple devices at a time. They prefer to multitask when doing homework–listening to music, texting and watching television–and they don’t believe multitasking compromises the quality of their work.

The results clearly reveal equity as a major issue.  Kids in lower income homes have less access and fewer devices and less likely to use technology in doing their homework.

The ten official key findings:

Filed under: infographics, media, media literacy, research, technology, teens