Composing Texts With Digital Tablets in Kindergarten

• In Event: AERA Poster Session 14
  In Poster Session: Technology and the Early Learner

Abstract

Using qualitative methods, researchers investigated a digital composing environment in kindergarten. Data sources included field notes from observations, 380 digitally-composed writing samples, 82 handwritten writing samples, and semi-structured interviews. Twice weekly across 15 weeks, researchers documented the teacher’s writing instruction and digital applications instruction, and students’ participation in composing activities. Semantic relationship and conventional content analysis were used to analyze the data corpus. Results demonstrated that the teacher taught students how to use the digital technology and a range of encoding skills and composing strategies to support digital (as well as handwritten) composition. Students appropriated those skills and strategies to varying degrees across writing modes. Use of digital tablets and software applications afforded and also constrained some students’ composing efforts.

Authors

• Sandra Lee Beam, Shawnee State University

• Cheri Williams, University of Cincinnati