One more piece of interesting data from the recent PISA test: Two German researchers found that students who use computers at school frequently (i.e., several times a week) perform "sizably and statistically worse" in math and reading than pupils who use computers (at school) seldom or never. The researchers responsibly factored in home and school affluence to arrive at their conclusion, and theorize that frequent computer use comes "at the expense of traditional learning methods." The optimal computer use seems to be somewhere between a few times a year and several times a month - which might come as a surprise to techno-utopians (and computer marketers).
"Study: PCs make kids dumber," by Robin Lettice, The Register, December 7, 2004