Poster #233 - Children’s Use of Digital Devices to Support Learning at Home: A Descriptive Study

• In Event: 3-159 - Poster Session 12
  In Poster Session: PS 12 Section - Technology, Media & Child Development

Integrative Statement

As digital devices have become increasingly affordable, technology has assumed a featured role in informal home learning experiences (DOE, 2017; Reid et al., 2016; Wartella et al., 2016). As devices have become more accessible, so has educational media (DOE, 2017; Shuler, 2012). On average, children spend about 56-minutes per day using educational media (Rideout, 2014). There is evidence that digital devices and media can make a positive impact on children’s learning (DOE, 2017; Neuman & Kaefer, 2017; Wartella et al., 2016). However, there are two important limitations to this research. First, much of this research focused on classroom learning and teachers’ views. Fewer studies have examined digital device use for home learning or parents’ views about technology. Second, the majority of research focuses on digital device use in math and reading, much less is known about device use in science and writing. The current study addressed these limitations.

Method. An online survey was distributed to 189 parents (91% mothers, 82% White, 77% college-educated). On average, parents were 39 years old (SD = 6.02). As is common in survey research, the sample was highly educated (Galea & Tracy, 2007). Children (52% female) were evenly distributed between grades (37% 1st/2nd, 40% 3rd/4th, and 23% 5th/6th). Parents were asked to report what digital devices children used for learning, how frequently they used devices, and how confident they felt in supporting the use of technology for learning (see Table 1)

Results. Ninety-four percent of children had access the internet at home. Tablets were the most popular technology used. Most parents agreed/ strongly agreed they had good basic computer skills (93%), were comfortable working with new technology (89%), and had good overall knowledge of technology (85%).

On average, children used digital devices more frequently for math and reading than science and writing. Parents reported small differences in their confidence using digital devices for learning (See Table 1). For math, children used apps and websites. E-books and search engines were used to support reading. Technology use for science and writing was infrequent. Few parents mentioned using YouTube or watching documentaries for science and writing occurred minimally through texting or chat features in games. Most parents said devices were used “just the right amount.” Parents noted pairing technology alongside more traditional activities and expressed both positive and negative views about the use of devices for learning (see Table 2).

Discussion. Parents and children are making use of technology at home to support their children’s learning. Parents were most able to leverage technology for learning math and reading, but made less use of technology to support their children’s science and writing. Finding appropriate education media can be difficult, parents may need support in finding digital media than can support science and writing. Importantly, parents felt confident using technology and supporting their children’s use of technology, which bodes well given the increased ubiquity of technology in the education. However, we should note that due to the characteristics of our sample, these results may not generalize to less privileged samples.

Authors

• Susan Sonnenschein, UMBC
  Presenting Author

• Rebecca Dowling, UMBC
  Non-Presenting Author

• Brittany Gay, UMBC
  Non-Presenting Author