With so many educational apps in the market place, how can you evaluate which ones are the best for early learners?

1. Learn to Fish-Evaluate Apps Yourself!
NAEYC National Institute for Early Childhood Professional Development
San Francisco, June 2013
Lilla Dale McManis, PhD-Research Director
dmcmanis@hatchearlylearning.com LillaDaleMcManis@DrLDMcManis
Copyright 2013.

2. If you don’t
know where
you’re
going, any
road will get
you there.
----Lewis
Carroll

3. Did you know?
• “App Store has been subject to over 10 billion
downloads and AndroLib claims Market has
exceeded 3.2 billion downloads. These
numbers are undoubtedly impressive and
awe-inspiring, but how many times are these
billions of downloaded apps actually being
used? A study by software company Localytics
states that 26 percent of applications
downloaded are only opened once.”
http://www.phonedog.com/2011/02/01/how-many-times-are-downloaded-
applications-actually-being-used/

4. Did you know?
• Would you be surprised to hear that more than
60% of the apps in the App Store have never
been downloaded, even once? That's the
conclusion of analytical firm Adeven. Christian
Henschel, Adeven CEO, said that there are only a
"couple of thousand apps" that get downloaded
in number from Apple's on-line applications
store.”
http://www.phonearena.com/news/400000-apps-in-the-App-Store-have-never-been-
downloaded-says-report_id32943

5. Purpose & Learning Objectives
To provide you with the tools and understanding
needed to evaluate Apps at your local program or
classroom level…
• Why it is important to systematically evaluate Apps
yourself?
• What are the key areas to consider?
• How does the “Early Childhood Educational Technology
Evaluation Toolkit” work?
*Disclaimer: Photos and APPS do not imply endorsement.

6. Setting the Stage…
Let’s first briefly visit
NAEYC & Fred Rogers
position statement
http://www.naeyc.org/content/technology-and-young-children

7. When used intentionally and
appropriately, technology and interactive media
are effective tools to support learning and
development.
• Active, hands-on, engaging, and empowering;
• Give the child control;
• Provide adaptive scaffolds to help children progress in
skills development at their individual rates; and
• Are used as one of many options to
support children’s learning.
• Technology and interactive media should expand
children’s access to new content and new skills.

8. Intentional use requires early childhood
teachers and administrators to have
information and resources regarding the
nature of these tools and the implications of
their use with children.
• To better meet the needs of individual children;
• Supporting enhanced communication
with families; and
• Providing children new opportunities for
exploration and mastery.
• Cost and maintenance must also be considered.

9. APPS, APPS, & More APPs
• Apps on mobile devices making way into early
childhood classrooms at unprecedented rate
• Reported in iLearnII study, Joan Ganz Cooney
Center found as of mid-2011 already over
800,000 Apps
• Representing a multibillion-dollar market

10. So What’s There?
• Cooney Center analyzed 200 Apps
• 100 in top selling category
education category of iTunes store
• Almost 50% of top 25 sellers for elementary
• In Education category
overall, toddler/preschool Apps most popular
(at 58%)
• As well as area w/ most growth from 2009 to
2011

11. Their Conclusions….
• Assessing quality and learning value is difficult
– Common standards of educational value for Apps
not present
– Few reputable reviewers
– These reviewers’ inability to keep up with all the
Apps there are currently and that keep coming

12. Their Recommendations
• Cooney Center calls for creating a common set
of education standards and
• To take the opportunity to do so in the App
market while it is still forming

13. Let’s Check an App Out….

14. Recent Case In Point….
http://childrensappreview.blogspot.com/2013/05/are-toca-boca-apps-really-
educational.html
May 29, 2013

15. Early Childhood Educational
Technology Evaluation Toolkit
• To address, evaluation tool developed for
software review which includes Apps on tablets.
• Areas chosen informed by research and key
considerations identified as important by field of
educational technology, specifically as relevant to
younger learners.
• Tool published mid-2012 by NAEYC in journal
“Young Children” & 2012 book “Spotlight on
Young Children and Technology”.

16. How do I know
the technology
and content are
appropriate and
children are
learning?

17. What would you like children to learn?
A first step is to establish learning goals for the
children. For example:
– approaches to learning (such as curiosity, flexible
thinking, persistence)
– language/literacy
– mathematics
– social studies
– science
– social-emotional (like cooperation, identifying
emotions)
– self-help

18. Then it’s time to evaluate:
• Educational value
• Engagement to enhance learning
• Child-friendliness
• Interactivity
• Monitoring of progress

19. Educational value
• learning versus focus on winning?
• content based on research/standards?
• feedback is informative/teaches?

20. Age-Child Appropriate
• appropriate cognitive skill(s)/subject matter?
• set in interesting context?
• pre/non-readers can navigate?
• free from bias?

21. Child-Friendly
• simple/clear choices?
• multiple, positive opportunities for success?
• after adult support, children can use
independently?

22. Enjoyable/Engaging
• enough activities with variety?
• appropriate use of rewards?
• graphics realistic and appealing to intended
age?
• activities match well to attention span?

23. Progress Monitoring- Assessment
• covers all the key areas the software teaches?
• easy to use and interpret?

24. Individualizing Features
• can be customized for child’s needs?
• allows creation of new activities?

25. Integration
• initial training/professional development on
integration included?
• ongoing training/professional development
opportunities?

26. Activity Time…..
Evaluate provided examples using the Toolkit

27. App Evaluation Activity: Dora 3D Pyramid

28. App Evaluation Activity: Reading Raven

29. App Evaluation Activity: Toca Boca Hair Salon

30. Closing Thoughts
We hope this session and the Toolkit will:
• free you from the current situation in which
many App reviewers do not have a strong
background in
– child development
– Education
– teaching pedagogy
• are reviewing based on
– personal preference
– bells and whistles
– pro or con agenda

31. Apps versus Learning Systems Software
• Single Apps might be better for enhancement than
main component of the curriculum.
• While tempting to always go free there is
something to “you get what you pay for”.
• Less may be more.
• There are still many very good more
comprehensive learning systems which meet a high
standard according to the areas of the Toolkit.
• No matter how the App or any software comes into
your classroom, YOU as the teacher are in the best
position to decide if it is a good addition to your
children’s learning environment.

32. Action Plan
To help you incorporate the information
from this session, consider this Action Plan:
• As a result of what you have learned in this
session, what are the things you will want to do
differently?
• When you succeed incorporating this new
information, how will it impact your work?
• What kind of help do you need, and from whom, to
implement your new information?
• How might you share what you have learned and your
successes with parents and with colleagues?

33. Q & A

34. To Say Thank You….
• eBook
http://hatchearlylearning.com/resources/ebooks/evaluating-technology-ebook/

35. Resources
• How to Evaluate Technology for Early Learners: Hatch
Webinar
http://hatchearlylearning.com/events/how-to-evaluate-technology-for-early-
learners/
• Finding the Education in Educational Technology:
NAEYC Young Children Journal
http://www.naeyc.org/yc/article/finding-education-in-educational-
technology
• Joan Ganz Cooney Center: Publications
http://www.joanganzcooneycenter.org/publications/
• Fred Rogers Center: ELE
http://www.fredrogerscenter.org/resources/early-learning-environment/
• And we invite you to visit the Hatch Early Learning:
Blog
http://hatchearlylearning.com/resources/blog/

36. Good places for social connections
• LinkedIn: Early Childhood Technology
Network
• Twitter: #ecetechchat
–Every other Weds. night @ 9 EST
• Facebook: NAEYC Technology &
Young Children Interest Forum