International Study Questions Computers’ Aid in Learning

Spending on computers in homes and schools is often rationalized as an investment in greater academic achievement, but a recent international analysis waves a caution flag to that view.

The analysis looks at survey data from the Program for International Student Assessment, or PISA, a test of the achievement of 15-year-old students that is conducted in 32 countries. The countries include 28 of the 30 members of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, which sponsors the test.

The OECD, based in Paris, includes the United States, Canada, and Mexico, most of the countries in Western Europe, some Eastern European countries, and...