Dilemmas and concerns of families about the use of digital educational resources in the Early Childhood Education stage

Authors

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.1344/der.2022.41.93-113

Keywords:

Families, technologies, Digital Educational Resources, childhood education, Perceptions, uses, mediations, pandemic

Abstract

Within the framework of an ongoing research project, this paper presents and analyses the perceptions and appreciations that a sample of families from three different Spanish regions, The Canary Islands, Galicia and Valencia, express regarding the availability, use, perceptions and mediations performed with digital materials and resources. Devices, platforms and applications they use at home, in some cases, to support the teaching and learning process carried out in schools and in the Key Stage 2 of Childhood Education. These perceptions and appreciations were gathered in focus groups during the period of the pandemic and within the mentioned framework of a project with a mixed methodological option. The evidence from the fieldwork and much of the specialised literature suggests that, although they have more than enough digital resources, and their children are skilled and motivated to use them, their position regarding the risks and benefits of the digitalisation process is unstable, contradictory, insecure, a permanent source of family conflict and in need of support. Aspects that, as a whole, have a significant impact on the school reinforcement that families provide to their children at home, particularly in infant school.

References

AEP (2021). Congreso AEP 2021: Los pediatras advierten de una "pandemia" de problemas de salud mental en la población infanto-juvenil y urgen un plan de prevención y respuesta. https://go.uv.es/4G8rgXC

AIMC (2019). Informe Niñ@s-2018. AIMC. https://www.aimc.es/otros-estudios-trabajos/aimc-ninos/

Barbour, R. (2013). Los grupos de discusión en Investigación Cualitativa. Morata.

Berríos, L., Buxarrais, M. R., & Garcés, M. S. (2015). Uso de las TIC y mediación parental percibida por niños de Chile. Comunicar, 45, 162-168. https://doi.org/10.3916/C45-2015-17

Besoli, G., Palomas, N., & Chamorro, A. (2018). Uso del móvil en padres, niños y adolescentes: Creencias acerca de sus riesgos y beneficios. Aloma, 36(1). 29-39. https://doi.org/10.51698/aloma.2018.36.1.29-39

Bickerton, Chr., & Invernizzi, C. (2021). Technopopulism: The new logic of democratic Politics. Oxford University Press.

Carbonell, X., Calvo, F., Panova, T., & Beranuy, M. (2021). Consideración crítica de las adicciones digitales. Digital Education Review, 39, 4-22. https://doi.org/10.1344/der.2021.39.4-22

Costa, M., Busó, P., Blasco, C., & Morante, M. (2021). Changer. Children’s profiles new segmentation. Insight and preferences of children 4 to 12 years old. AIJU.

Dias, P., Brito, R., Ribbens, W., Daniela, L., Rubene, Z., Dreier, M., Gemo, M., Di Gioia, R., & Chaudron, S. (2016). The role of parents in the engagement of young children with digital technologies: Exploring tensions between rights of access and protection, from ‘Gatekeepers’ to ‘Scaffolders’. Global Studies of Childhood, 6(4), 414–427. https://doi.org/10.1177/2043610616676024

Ebbeck, M., Yim, H.Y.B., Chan, Y., & Goh, M. (2015). Singaporean Parents’ Views of Their Young Children’s Access and Use of Technological Devices. Early Childhood Education Journal, 44, 127–134. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-015-0695-4

Enireb, M., & Patiño, V. (2017). Parálisis cerebral infantil: estimulación temprana del lenguaje. Dominio de las Ciencias, 3(4), 627-706. https://doi.org/10.23857/pocaip

Erdogan, N.I., Johnson, J.E., Dong, P.I., & Qiu, Z. (2019). Do Parents Prefer Digital Play? Examination of Parental Preferences and Beliefs in Four Nations. Early Childhood Education Journal, 47, 131–142. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-018-0901-2

Flick, U. (2009). An introduction to qualitative research. Sage (4° edición).

Grané, M. (2021). Mediación digital parental. ¿Es necesaria una educación digital en la primera infancia? EDUTEC. Revista Electrónica de Tecnología Educativa, 76, 7-21. https://doi.org/10.21556/edutec.2021.76.2037

Hwang, S. (2008). Utilizing qualitative data analysis software: A review of ATLAS.ti. Social Science. Computer Review, 26(4), 519–527. https://doi.org/10.1177/0894439307312485

INE (2020). Encuesta sobre Equipamiento y Uso de Tecnologías de Información y Comunicación en los Hogares. Año 2020. https://www.ine.es/prensa/tich_2020.pdf

Jiménez-Morales, M., Montaña, M., & Medina-Bravo, P. (2020). Uso infantil de dispositivos móviles. Influencia del nivel socioeconómico materno. Comunicar, 64, 21-28.

Kitzinger, J., & Barbour, R. (Eds.) (1999). Developing focus group research: politics, theory and practice. Sage

Konca, A. S. (2021). Digital Technology Usage of Young Children: Screen Time and Families. Early Childhood Education Journal. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643-021-01245-7

Lepienik, J., & Samec, P. (2013). Uso de tecnologías en el entorno familiar en niños de cuatro años de Eslovenia. Comunicar, 40, 119-126. https://doi.org/10.3916/C40-2013-03-02

Livingstone, S., & Blum-Ross, A. (2020). Parenting for a Digital Future: How Hopes and Fears About Technology Shape Children’s Lives. Oxford University Press.

Miles, M., Huberman, A. M., & Saldaña, J. (2014). Qualitative Data Analysis. A Methods Sourcebook. Sage.

Papadakis, S., Zaranis, N., & Kalogiannakis, M. (2019). Parental involvement and attitudes towards young Greek children’s mobile usage. International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction, 22(100144), 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcci.2019.100144

Parker, A., & Tritter, J. (2006). Focus group method and methodology: current practice and recent debate, International Journal of Research & Method in Education, 29:1, 23-37, https://doi.org/10.1080/01406720500537304

Rideout, V. (2017). The Common Sense census: Media use by kids age zero to eight. Common Sense Media, 263-283. https://go.uv.es/PzAnH67

San Martín, A., & Peirats, J. (2018). Controversias en la transición del libro de texto en papel y electrónico a los contenidos digitales. Revista de Educación a Distancia, 56, 1-17. http://dx.doi.org/10.6018/red/56/5

Støle, H. (2018). Why digital natives need books: The myth of the digital native. First Monday, 23(10), 1-5. https://doi.org/10.5210/fm.v23i10.9422

Vittrup, B., Snider, S., Rose, K., & Rippy, J. (2016). Parental perceptions of the role of media and technology in their Young children’s lives. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 14(1), 43-54. https://doi.org/10.1177/1476718X14523749

Published

2022-07-05