On my last teaching practice, the children had been asked to each draw a picture of what they would have looked like as a baby during mat time. Afterwards, another teacher had brought out the centre’s touch tablet for the children to use. This was the first time I had seen children using a touch tablet so it was a very memorable, interesting experience for me. I was amazed at how easily the children managed to find their way around the applications and begin using them, instinctively using their fingers in certain ways to operate the touch tablet. It was eye-opening for me as I am slightly wary of using technology as I feel I have not got a large amount of knowledge about how it works and what it does, and had not used a touch tablet myself at that point. This experience caused me to reflect on how important it is to introduce children to technology at an early age, as due to rapid developments children today are being raised surrounded by technology Can-Yasar, Inal, Uyanik & Kandir, 2012). I felt I needed to improve my own knowledge about how I can use technology so I can help children develop their own skills in technology, and use technology to develop thoughts and skills in all areas in future.“Technology is increasingly recognized as an integral learning tool for promoting the social, linguistic, and cognitive development of young children” (Gimbert & Cristol, as cited in Couse & Chen, 2010, p. 75). The two children using the touch tablet had decided upon using a drawing application, and had begun to draw a baby, just like at mat-time but were working co-operatively and collaboratively, taking turns to each add a detail to their shared drawing. They were describing to each other what they were doing, and what else they could draw. “I am drawing the baby’s little nose” said Child A. Child C suddenly thought “Oh no, we forgot her ears, how will she hear?”. “I thought the baby was a boy?” said Child A. Child C responded “Okay, we can make the baby a boy, called Jack like my little brother”. The conversation happening between the two children was very interesting to see as it altered my view that computers were anti-social as the user becomes isolated through being able to give their attention only to the device and not to others around them. According to Kumtepe (as cited in Shifflet, Toledo & Mattoon, 2012) rather than promoting social isolation, children’s computer use increases social skills. “Children who use computers more frequently and at a more proficient level demonstrated more social skill gains and fewer problem behaviours in kindergarten” (Shifflet, Toledo & Mattoon, 2012, p. 38). I found it interesting to see that the children had taken a simple drawing activity from mat-time and had chosen to further the experience themselves through the use of technology. I would not have thought of providing the children this opportunity to further their experience through the use of technology, and instead would have ensured there was more paper and pens available and the toy babies accessible in the family corner but would not have given the computer a thought. “Equipment should be provided for … technological learning” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 83). I am now aware that it is not about whether to provide technology for the children to freely use, but is about how we can best use it to enhance children’s learning today (Couse & Chen, 2010). Technology is very important to improve the quality of education, and should not be seen as separate to education (Can-Yasar, et al., 2012).
References
Can-Yasar, M., Inal, G., Uyanik, O., & Kandir, A. (2012). Using technology in pre-school education. Retrieved from ERIC, EBSCOhost.
Couse, L. J., & Chen, D. W. (2010). A tablet computer for young children? Exploring its viability for early childhood education. Journal Of Research On Technology In Education, 43(1), 75-98.
Ministry of Education. (1996). Early childhood curriculum Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mo nga mokopuna o Aotearoa .Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Shifflet, R., Toledo, C., & Mattoon, C. (2012). Touch tablet surprises: A preschool teacher's story. Young Children, 67(3), 36-41.
I know exactly how you feel about using technology as I am not the most confident person when using it either. I’ve learned a great deal about the I Pad from the children I work with! I think it’s important for teachers to realise that just as children learn from us, so too can we from them. I agree with you that children need to be exposed to technology from an early age as it is already part of their lives. Whether we like it or not technology is part of our children’s lives and we teachers need to embrace it and provide opportunities for children to develop technological literacy as this will equip them to participate in society as informed citizens and be prepared for technological jobs in the future (Ministry of Education, 1993). Early childhood education builds on the connections to children’s wider life experiences (Ministry of Education, 1996). Just as you observed with the children, technology most definitely impacts their lives today. It is therefore important that teachers consider integrating it into children’s experiences to enhance learning (Ministry of Education, 2005).
ReplyDeleteI was also under the myth that digital technology promoted anti-social behaviour but from my teaching practice experience I’ve discovered this is untrue. I’ve noticed that children share information, strengthen their language and are involved in a lot of decision making. Davidson and Wright (2003) backs this up by stating that technology can serve as a catalyst for sharing information, language development and decision making. Ka pai for realizing we can use technology to enhance children’s learning and for wanting to increase your knowledge of technology.
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ReplyDeleteKa Pai Alysha! I really enjoyed reading about the children’s touch tablet experience within your centre and believe that it would have been very beneficial to the children’s learning development. I can see how this experience would have been exciting for you also, as I too have never used one of these technological pieces of equipment. It is important to understand that these technological items can aid in the development of children’s social, linguistic, and cognitive skills (Gimbert & Cristol, as cited in Couse & Chen, 2010). Have you considered how technology may increase children’s self-worth and confidence levels? Te Whāriki states that; “Capability in solving practical problems contributes to self-confidence and well-being” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 94). As the children acquire new knowledge and skills of how to work these technological items, their confidence levels are boosted as they can assist their peers in acquiring these new skills also. I agree with you that technology is evident in our children’s lives, and that it is important for them to become familiar with it in order to keep up with the times. It is our responsibility as early childhood educators to develop our skills in order to prepare the children for jobs that do not exist yet.
ReplyDeleteI was quite impressed by the fact that touch tablet is being used in the centre. Also, it is amazing to see that children know what to do at navigating that latest digital device. Certainly children these days are living in the era of technology. I agree with Alysha that teachers need to be able to support children develop technological skills because technology is at the heart of our everyday lives. Alysha made a good point when she claimed technology is an important tool to enhance the quality of education. Fleer & Jane (2011) explains the significance of technology education for the young children and educators have to consider the selection and allocation of resources and time to maximize the effectiveness of technology education. Like Alysha, I also believe teacher have to make sure how to best use technology to enhance the positive learning outcomes for the children. ICT should be one of the resources teachers are providing to support children’s learning, “alongside the many other resources available” (Ministry of Education, 2005, p. 4).
ReplyDeleteReference
Fleer, M., & Jane, B. (2011). Design and technology for children. Frenchs Forest, Australia: Pearson Australia.
Ministry of Education. (2005). Foundations for discovery. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Tino Pai Alysha, I was very intrigued by your reflection on the Ipad as I also focused on the Ipad in one of my reflections. I believe ours is quite similar and have valid points about how the Ipad as a technological tool benefits our young children’s experiences, cognitive and physical development, linguistic, and social skills (Couse & Chen, 2010). I was also hesitant using the Ipad because I don’t have much experience on using the technological tool myself, but I was willing to learn about the new technology, evaluate the purpose for the children’s learning and development, and observing the children’s use of the tool (Shifflet, Toledo, Mattoon, 2012). I see you also recognized and supported the importance of using the Ipad from your experience and the observations, I believe the Ipad is a tool for expanding children’s learning experiences, sharing knowledge and information, collaborating, problem-solving, curiosity, and building a learning community of children and teachers (Ginapolis, 2012). I believe teachers can learn greatly from children, it is important for teachers to become familiar with the tool and develop their skills to be able to give the children opportunities to explore the importance of using technology.
ReplyDeleteYou quoted “Equipment should be provided for … technological learning” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 83). From my experience and yours I agree with you that we need to provide equipment such as the Ipad to give children the opportunities to create new valuable experiences that supports their learning and development. A child being able to collaborate with their peers through using the Ipad is a significant part in children’s learning and development in technology, “Technology growing experience in solving problems together develops children’s understanding of how technologies can help them and others (Ministry of Education, 1996, p.96)”. I found this very useful link on youtube which I think is relevant and useful video clip that supports your discussion on the importance of enhancing children’s learning through the use of the Ipad in the early childhood environment http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFU0SjKqeeg
Reference List:
Couse, L. J. & Chen, D. (2010). A tablet computer for young children? Exploring its viability for early childhood education. Journal of research on technology in education, 43 (1), 75-98.
Games,J.( 2012). How to combine iPads with real world education experiences. Retrieved from: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BFU0SjKqeeg
Ginapolis, M.(2012). Ten educational technology quotes. Retrieved from: http://teachbytes.com/2012/03/01/10-educational-technology-quotes/
Ministry of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o
Aotearoa : Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand: Learning Media.
Shifflet, R., Toledo,C., Mattoon, C. ( 2012). Touch tablet surprises: a preschool teacher’s story. Young children, 67 (3), 36-41.
Alysha, Like Shin, I was really surprised that the centre had a touch tablet.
ReplyDeleteThe children did not seem to be phased with using it,and found their way around the touch tablet with no problems. I would not know how to use it and it has also made me think that I need to get more involved with the Technology tools.
Like you I feel teachers need to extend on their knowledge of technology so they can increase their support and knowledge onto the children."It is the teacher's knowledge and skills about how to use the technology that makes the difference, not the technology itself" (Tsantis, Bewick, Thouvenelle,2003, p.4).
I agree the use of technology equipment should be made more available to children as a resource in the centre.
Reference List:
Tsantis, l.A., Bewick. C.J., & Thouvenelle, S. (2003).Examining
some common myths about computers use in the early years.
Young Children, 58(1),1-9.