Do Tablet Devices Improve Academic Performance? A Causal Approach

Many schools worldwide have implemented or plan to use tablets as an educational tool to enhance students’ academic achievement. Going beyond correlations and associations, this study investigates the impact of eBook tablets on students’ grade point averages (GPAs) using matching methods. Using survey data from two major universities in the Midwest, we find that providing eBook tablets to university students improves their academic performance. The impact of the eBook tablets is more pronounced when tablets are provided to all the participants in the sample. Based on the potential means outcome, the result further demonstrates that students who did not initially receive tablets in both universities would have benefited from having a tablet. Implications for practice or policy: This research estimated a 0.15 GPA improvement among the students who were provided tablets. A marginal increase may beneficially affect students who narrowly miss qualifying for scholarships or fellowships. A 0.15 GPA each year could move a student up a whole letter grade over the four years. Methods utilized demonstrate a causal effect.