Handwriting or iPads? A comparative study of practices in emergent literacy for children aged 0-8
52%
OF CHILDREN AGED 0 TO 8 HAVE ACCESS TO TOUCH SCREEN DEVICES AT HOME
Children using touch screen devices in 2014 5 - 8 years old
iPad learning is very much promoted especially in maths at her school. - Kelly A.
Background
2 - 4 years old 0 - 1 years old
10%
40%
50%
• light, mobile with an interface based on touch • children can use a tablet laying down or with it on their laps or beside their favourite toy • The freedom of movement allows children to collaborate and work together
Introduction In today’s age of technology, children have access at home to touch screen devices such as iPads, tablets and smart phones. Research has begun to explore how these electronic devices can help children with their emerging literacy. To date, research on the effects of handwriting with emergent literacy is plentiful and strongly suggests that poor handwriting affects learning outcomes. (Cahill, 2009) Students who struggle with handwriting benefit from extra support in their early school years. It is suggested in the research that touch screen devices can, in part, provide the additional support. It is also suggested by the research that children like to use touch screen devices and are motivated to learn with them. (Cahill, 2009) By comparing the research of the two methods of learning, it was found that drawing and writing by hand is still the main method of learning but touch screen devices are beginning to appear in schools and learning via the use of electronic devices is supported at home.
• They make use of interactive multimedia • The authors also quote statistical data of usage in a survey in the USA by Rideout (see graph) This is relevant because it describes how children learn through the use of electronic devices and it provides statistical data on the use of tablets in children aged between the ages of 0 and 8. (see graph) Further, the data shows in my poster and research the extent of usage of tablets at home. The article also breaks down the data by age groups which was used to break down the ages of children in the parent interviews that were conducted.
The questions that were asked encompassed what shapes, letters and numbers the children had learnt and the amount of time spent between traditional materials such as pencils, crayons and paper and touch screen tablets and smart phones.
None of the respondents had children aged 0 - 1 4 respondents had a child aged between 2 - 4 11 respondents had a child aged between 5 - 8 (Rideout, 2011)
Dr Michelle M Neumann and David L Neumann discuss how tablets provide learning opportunities: • Easier to use than computers
An on-line interview was advertised on Facebook asking parents of children aged between 0 - 8 to respond and answer brief questions about their child’s learning of letters, numbers and shapes. Consent to publish their answers was sought.
15 parents responded. The number and age of the children were as follows:
Neumann, Michelle M., and David L. Neumann. 2014. “Touch screen tablets and emergent literacy”. Early Childhood Education Journal 42 (4): 231-9. DOI: 10.1007/s1064301306083.
They did use apps to learn to draw numbers, etc. but it did not seem to help at all. They learned to write by hand (funnily enough) by writing by hand. - Tim
Parent Interviews
Quotes from these interviews have been incorporated in the research.
Practitioners In the course of the research, articles, papers and research by Dr Michelle M. Neumann constantly presented themselves in my searches. Dr Neumann practices her research into Early Childhood Literacy at Griffith University. Within her research, Dr Neumann has developed an early learning application for touch screen tablets and smart phones. Jonathan Hoefler is an influential modern typographer whose fonts appear in app for touch screen devices such as the iPads, tablets and smart phones. His fonts, which include Didot, Gotham and Whitney, are renowned for their legibility and the fonts designed for screen are created with legibility in mind. They are at their best on touch screens. Barbara Enright is a traditional showcard and ticket writer. Her work has inspired me with ideas to create a board game and flash cards for young children as part of future development of this topic.
My child is autistic and responds well to technology combined with songs, picture books and flash cards. - Gina D.
Conclusion Research on the benefits of touch screen usage in the home and in schools has only recently begun and at this stage is inconclusive. It is thought that touch screens, with adequate applications, are of benefit as an additional tool to emergent literacy for children aged 0 to 8 when they begin exploring through play. Both non-digital and digital play a role in children’s early literacy and moving forward it is appropriate to develop a game board to encourage the formation of letters, numbers and shapes. I will design, develop and refine a fun and colourful game that is appealing to 3-6 year old children that will encourage early literacy.
My child uses the iPad and phone to participate in a literacy program called “reading Eggs and Mathletics”, all hosted online. This is done in conjunction with home readers, storybooks and subjects of interest (books borrowed from both school and public libraries - Emma S.
He had a couple of letter games on his Leap Frog Pad. It was never a large part of his practice. - Jennifer L.
This was supported by interviews which were conducted with parents for the purpose of this comparative study.
A Comparison of the old and the new The old: pencils and crayons
The new: touch screen tablets and phones
• handwriting closely linked to academic achievement
• The impact is not yet fully known
• it is found to be favourable in the development of composition skills
• they have the potential to enhance children’s emergent literacy
• writing by hand assists remembering
• touch screens are intuitive
• it develops hand-eye co-ordination
• tablets are versatile for writing, drawing and easily downloadable apps
• it develops fine motor skills • it develops visual motor skills • materials are readily available • it is low cost
• touch screen devices provide enthusiasm • they are colourful, animated and challenging • the technology is immersive
• methods are varied, true and tried
• teachers and parents lack time, confidence and training to apply the technologies to learning
• there are advantages to the texture of paper
• there is a lack of appropriate apps.
(Cahill, 2009)
(Neumann, 2014)
References Neumann, Michelle M., and David L. Neumann. 2014. “Touch screen tablets and emergent literacy.” Early Childhood Education Journal42 (4): 231-9. DOI: 10.1007/s1064301306083 Cahill, Susan M. 2009. “Where does handwriting fit in?: Strategies to support academic achievement.” Intervention in School and Clinic.44 (4): 223-8. DOI: 10.1177/1053451208328826 Flewitt, Rosie, David Messer, and Natalia Kucirkova. 2015. “New directions for early literacy in a digital age: The iPad.” Journal of Early Childhood Literacy.15 (3): 289-310. DOI: 10.1177/1468798914533560 Neumann, Michelle M., and David L. Neumann.2015. “The use of touch-screen tablets at home and pre-school to foster emergent literacy.” Journal of Early Childhood Literacy. 0 (0): 1-18. DOI: 10.1177/1468798415619773Neumann, Michelle M. 2014. “An examination of touch screen tablets and emergent literacy in Australian pre-school children.” Australian Journal of Education.58 (2): 109-22. DOI: 10.1177/0004944114523368 Rideout, V. (2011). Zero to eight: Children’s media use in America. San Francisco, CA. “Common Sense Media”. www.commonsensemedia.org/sites/ default/files/research/zerotoeightfinal2011.pdf.
Illustrations and graphics by Rita Drysdall