Presentation related to teaching young children in a digital classroom using iPads, computers, and other technology. Specific focus on emergent literacy
2. For children under 2 ….
No forms of digital media
For children over 2 …
Brief periods that last no
more than 2 hours/day
American Academy of Pediatrics,
2011
National Association for the Education of
Young Children (NAEYC) & Fred Rogers Center
for Early Learning and Children’s Media, 2012
3. What are the technology standards
for young children?
• Open and navigate through digital learning applications and
programs.
• Use, operate, and name a variety of digital tools.
• Use digital learning applications and programs to create digital
products and express own ideas.
• Use technology to access appropriate information.
• Practice safe behavior while using digital tools and resources.
By the end of prekindergarten, the child will …
Texas Prekindergarten Guidelines, 2015. Retrieved from
http://tea.texas.gov/index2.aspx?id=2147495508
5. CAUTION!
“”Integrating technology tools into
instruction refers to the process in
which technology is USED AS A
TOOL to ACTIVELY SUPPORT the
tasks of TEACHING and LEARNING.
It refers to the different ways that
technology tools can be used to
SUPPORT LEARNERS AS THEY
CONSTRUCT THEIR OWN
KNOWLEDGE THROUGH
COMPLETION OF CREATIVE
ACTIVITIES THAT ENHANCE
MEANINGFUL LEARNING”
(Keengwe & Onchwari, 2009, p.
9. • Composed of
alphabetic symbols
that form words,
sentences, and
paragraphs
• Might appear in
continuous
(narratives, reports,
blogs) or non-
continuous (icons,
road signs, maps)
form
Have the potential
to engage a wider
range of senses
Dynamic –
children can
create their own
reading pathways
Static – the story
remains the same
each time
Reading aloud of
these types of
texts has been
shown to be more
beneficial to
reading
comprehension
than e-books with
distracting
features
10. • eBooks can be a highly engaging and
enjoyable learning experience for both
adult and child
• Adults can use digital media like eBooks
to introduce young children to this part
of culture
• eBooks may allow children to learn new
and important skills and literacies that are
absent from interactions with printed
texts
11. • Consider all of the same characteristics
you would for printed books:
• Well-constructed, engaging content
• Rich language and visuals
• Relate to the young child’s
developing personal interests and life
experiences.
• eBooks with features that extend the plot
and/or information to help the reader
better understand story elements and
concepts presented.
• eBooks that allow the reader to turn on
and off various features to enable
discussion of the text while reading.
12. • Multimedia, especially with with young
children, cannot and should not replace
adult interactions around texts! Ebooks
only provide a new form and context;
they still require adult mediation through
language interactions.
• Control the pacing of eBooks by disabling
continuous play modes.
• Scaffold eBook reading in similar ways to
research-based traditional shared
reading.
• Turn narration options off to read the text
aloud.
13. THE I-PAD(FLEWITT, MESSER, & KUCIRKOVA , 2015)
• Closed apps
– The content cannot be changed or
extended by the user
– Sometimes known as “edutainment”
apps
– Based on outdated behaviorist
theories of learning (user practices
skills and is rewarded with tokens)
– Position children as recipients of
narrowly defined literacy knowledge
rather than creators of original
material.
• Open apps
– Users can personalize activities
– Allow children to engage more deeply
and creatively in learning tasks.
– Examples:
14. Blagojevic, Chevalier, Macisaac, Hitchcock, & Frechette,
2010
• “Less is more” approach – start with only a few
programs and activities.
• Help children become familiar with particular
software activity, like the paint tool options in a
drawing program for creating a digital painting
and story.
• Plan time to share children’s work. Read and
discuss class books and stories created on the
computer with the group.
15. -Teachers are working with students who are growing up
with technology as a non-remarkable feature of their
world (Parette, Quesenberry, & Blum, 2009).
16. • A three-year examination of early childhood teacher preparation found that while
preservice teachers envision using technology in their classrooms in the future, in
practice there is resistance to use of technology because it is often perceived as
“interfering” with their relationship with children.
• Use of tools cannot be expected unless teacher education programs and professional
development practices change in recognition of technology practices both in home and
community settings.
• Early childhood teachers need to
• Understand how to use research-based instructional strategies
• Understand why a specific technology tool is important to young children (curricular
competence)
• Demonstrate ability to use the technology tool/s (operational competence)
• Apply the technology tools in the classroom (functional competence)
17. Components of professional development for effective
technological integration:
(Keengwe & Onchwari, 2009)
1. Connection to student learning
2. Hands-on technology use
3. Variety of learning experiences
4. Curriculum-specific applications
5. New role for teachers
6. Collegial learning
7. Active participation of teachers
8. On-going process
9. Sufficient time
10. Technical assistance and support
11. Administrative support
12. Adequate resources
13. Continuous funding
14. Built-in evaluations
20. REFERENCES
Blagojevic, A. (2016). Using technology to engage families. Teaching Young Children, 9(5), 10-11.
Blagojevic, B., Chevalier, S., Macisaac, A., Hitchcock, L., & Frechette, B. (2010). Young children and computers:
storytelling and learning in a digital age. Teaching Young Children, 3(5), 1-5.
Connor, C.M., Goldman, S.R., & Fishman, B. (2014). Technologies that support students’ literacy development. In
J.M. Spector, M.D. Merrill, J. Elen, & M.J. Bishop (Eds.), Handbook of Research on Educational
Communications and Technology, 4th Edition (pp. 591-604). NY: Springer.
Flewitt, R. , Messer, D., & Kucirkova, N. (2015). New directions for early literacy in a digital age: the iPad. Journal
of Early Childhood Literacy, 15(3), 289-310. doi: 10.11177/14687984145333560
Hoffman, J.L., & Paciga, K.A. (2014). Click, swipe, and read: sharing e-books with toddlers and preschoolers.
Early Childhood Education Journal, 42, 379-388. doi: 10.1007/s10643-013-0622-5
Keengwe, J., & Onchwari, G. (2009). Technology and early childhood education: a technology integration
professional development model for practicing teachers. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37, 209-218.
doi: 10.1007/s10643-009-0341-0
21. REFERENCES
Morgan, H. (2013). Multimodal children’s ebooks help young learners in reading. Early Childhood Education
Journal, 41, 477-483. doi: 10.1007/s10643-013-0575-8
National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) & Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and
Children’s Media at Saint Vincent College. (2012). Position statement: technology and interactive media as
tools in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved from:
www.naeyc.org/content/technolgy-and-young-children
Neumann, M.M., Finger, G., & Neumann, D. L. (2017). A conceptual framework for emergent digital literacy.
Early Childhood Education Journal, 45, 471-479. doi: 10.1007/s10643-016-0792-z
Parette, H.P., Quesenberry, A.C., & Blum, C. (2009). Missing the boat with technology usage in early childhood
settings: a 21st century view of developmentally appropriate practice. Early Childhood Education Journal,
37, 335-343. doi: 10.1007/s10643-009-0352-x
Rowe, D.W., & Miller, M.E. (2016). Designing for diverse classrooms: using iPads and digital cameras to
compose eBooks with emergent bilingual/biliterate four-year-olds. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy,
16(4), 425-472. doi: 10.1177/1468798415593622
22. REFERENCES
Texas Education Agency. (2015). Texas prekindergarten guidelines. Retrieved from:
http://tea.texas.gov/pkg.aspx
Wang, F., Kinzie, M.B., McGuire, P., & Pan, E. (2009). Applying technology to inquiry-based learning in early
childhood education. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37, 381-389. doi: 10.1007/s10643-009-0364-6
Notes de l'éditeur
Because the recommendation for young children is limited time using digital media, we must maximize the time students are on devices so they receive maximum benefit.
Open and navigate – the students will follow basic oral or visual cues for navigating through learning applications and programs successfully and listen to and interact with storybooks and information texts in electronic forms. The teacher provides time and technology for children to use, models use of digital tools with basic oral or visual cues, and provides a variety of opportunities to enhance learning experiences through the use of digital learning applications and programs.
Use and operate – Student navigates through digital learning applications and programs, uses terminology to describe work on digital devices, and includes gestures associated with touch screens (such as flick, zoom, pan, swipe, and rotate). The teacher provides instruction and practice time to enable the child to master this skill using the appropriate terminology and vocabulary.
Use digital learning apps – child creates writings and drawings using digital tools, and uses a variety of digital tools with audio, video, and graphics to create or communicate ideas. The teacher models and discusses how to use digital learning applications and programs, provides time for children to interact with different digital learning apps and programs, and integrates the use of technology into learning activities in meaningful ways.
Use technology – Childe learns new information through interaction with technology. The teacher models and discusses when and how to obtain information from digital sources.
Safe behavior – child follows procedures set by the teacher when using technology. Teacher creates and models procedures for using digital learning apps and programs and creates a safe virtual environment for children to navigate through (such as preselecting applications children can access or using monitoring programs) digital learning apps and programs.
The most important question – what can technology do from a teaching and learning perspective? If used correctly, technology supports constructivist pedagogies, inquiry-based learning, and emergent literacy. Instructional technologies should be used in early childhood inquiry education to enrich and provide structure for problem contexts and support cognitive and metacognitive processes.
(Caution) The most effective way to benefit from technology is to integrate it into the curriculum as opposed to integrating curriculum into the technology.
(Quote) This is a constructive perspective, where the focus is on the learner as a constructor of his or her own knowledge and the teacher facilitates learning through activities and exercises that are engaging and meaningful. Children ages 2-5 acquire many foundational aspects of language and literacy while exploring their world through social interactions with others around texts.
Embed authenticity
Emphasize knowledge construction
Use open-ended learning
Include student cooperation and collaboration
Integrate mixed ability levels and differentiated instruction where appropriate and possible
A broad range of topics to discuss related to the digital classroom – I’m going to focus on its use in supporting emergent literacy.
Digital and non-digital experiences with text work together in parallel, interacting with each other, and are not mutually exclusive. The solid arrows on the diagram represent direct pathways of development in digital and non-digital domains; the dotted arrows represent the overlap and transference of skills between non-digital and digital elements. The dotted lines around the figure indicate that these interactions occur within a sociocultural environment.
There are some differences and similarities between digital and non-digital texts
Ebooks should be used with young children in a shared reading context. This helps them to develop oral language, vocabulary, and listening comprehension.
It is important to note that other educational or entertainment apps for children may mimic or claim to be ebooks, but operate more as games or videos than books. (Click on e-books symbol). This is called a considerate text, one that includes multimedia effects that are congruent with the story
Research-based shared reading – language interactions that include comprehensible input, prompts for output (like gestures and facial expressions), connections to real-life experiences, and repetition
So when should closed apps be used? The most effective use of these apps is when they are strategically used by the teacher to offer alternative ways for children to master particular skills through practice, such as letter recognition and practice.
Examples of open apps: Our Story (Free), students can create their own digital stories and Puppet Pals (free)
