The article I read was titled Technology and Early Child Development and was written by Mary Eming Young, Senior Public Health Specialist, the World Bank. It stresses the importance of technology in the early childhood classroom.
Although this article was written 10 years ago it still contains some important ideas to think about.
The author was very interested in how important it is for all children have the opportunity to use technology in the classroom. She discusses how important it is for all children to have access to computers. I think this issue is very important and with many public schools now;housing preschools, preschools have easy access to computers. With access comes the question of how computers are used today. Computers should not be used for excessive drill and practice activities, or color book activities, but more open ended activities that allow the user to think and make decisions should be used.
This article also highlights the four major areas of development and discusses how technolory can be used in each area.
Social and Emotional development is the first area. Children form and sustain relationships and they learn to gives meaning to educational experiences. Computers can serve as a catalyst for social interaction and conversation, however computers and the such cannot replace human interaction. Children can listen to taped stories, or watch a program, but there has to be interaction woth others. Nothing can take the place of someone reading a story to a child while they are sitting on their lap! This creates interpersonal relationships! Certain computer software can be used as long as thers is immediate feedback with an adult. This creates interpersonal relationships Children learn how to interact with others.. Computers can help invite learning and encourage the connection to learning as long as it is done with adult intervention in some form.
The second area discussed is language. Language empowers children in both the cognitive and affective parts of education. Children need experiences in both written and oral communication in order to interact with others. Children need to see print in relationship with language. This article states that computers encourage language by promoting more complex speech and the development of fluency. Children can engage in high levels of spoken communication. They can hear a variety of language and learn from it. An extra benefit would be learning to take turns and cooperation with others. This may elicit more interaction than activities such as puzzles. There are many language rich software programs that promote language sevelopment.
Physical development and motor development are also mentioned. This is not only physical activity, but the promotion of health, as well as motor skills. A healthy child is able to focus and actively engage in learning. Active play cannot be replace with technology. Children need to move. Following a taped activity can provide ample opportunities to move. Children can also practice fine motor skills by learning to use the mouse and the keyboard.
This last area covered is cognitive development. This includes general knowlege. Activities should promote problem solving, knowlege of patterns, and understanding relationships between objects and events. Computers can introduce positive elements of children's play and learning as they explore and experiment. If technology is connected to what the child is doing it can lead to motivation and self direction. Children need to use programs that allow them to be creative, providing opportunities to discover, make choices, and find out the impact of decisions to foster creativity.
Compupters are best served if they are in the classroom, providing easier access. Computer labs hinder the opportunity for use when the device is needed. Labs also lead to more drill and practice activities instead of tool-oriented software.
Other technology like cameras, tape recorders, and TV/VCR are also effective in the classroom when used appropriately. They can lead to open ended activities. Children can see themselves, and hear thier voices in activities. This is evident in many of the programs I used in this technology class.
The two key questions that need to be addressed with the use of technology are--Is it developmentally appropriate? and--Will the activity benefit the child? This, along with balancing the use of technology with other activities will lead to many exciting learning experiences that will benefit the child for years to come
1 comment:
I think that this article has some great points but they are also a little naive as to the ways that it can hurt social development! As I read this article I thought of my daughter. She loves technology and will pay attention to it a lot longer than a book! With an ipad kids can explore a lot more in depth than they can with a book. There are 3D images, videos, narrators, sound clips and so many other amazing things! I teach at a high school in which every student has a laptop. One of the biggest problems that I see is that students struggle to explain and voice their opinion in an oral conversation. They are often distracted by their laptops and use them as a barrier to the outside world. My daughter will get a big exposure to technology but she will also learn to look people in the eyes and carry on an in depth conversation face to face! It is a big piece that today's generation is missing that is so important in life!
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