Poster #98 - YouTube’s Effect on Language Learning in Children

• In Event: Poster Session 02

Abstract

There is a variety of screen media targeted towards children and access to this media is easier than ever before. With the advancement of online spaces, YouTube has become the most common form of media consumption for children ages 0-8 (Rideout et. al, 2020). However, while this is a large body of research into television’s effect on children, there are few studies looking into YouTube’s effect on child learning, particularly their language development. In the first phase of the study, we will assess overall video quality on vocabulary. Here, we recruited 154 primary caregivers of 17-30 month old monolingual English-speaking children. Parents completed the Media Assessment Questionnaire (MAQ) 2.0 survey (Barr et al., 2020), which includes questions on how long children consume digital media, what kind of technology is being used (i.e. TV, YouTube), and the top three programs they are watching. We then plan to code the three programs listed for age appropriateness, content quality, design features, and learning objectives in each video to create a composite Video Score in which higher scores indicate a higher quality video. We hypothesize there will be a main effect of the features of the videos on vocabulary and retention performance. Subjects that spend more time watching YouTube videos that are lower quality, thereby having a lower Video Score, will lead to lower overall vocabulary in Phase 1 and poorer retention in Phase 2. Data collection for Phase 1 is complete and coding underway. The second phase of the study with focus on program pacing and word learning. Here, children will watch a lab-created video introducing four novel nouns at either a fast or slow pace. They will then be tested on their retention for these objects with an on-screen retention test as well as a generalization and transfer to physical items. In Phase 2, we hypothesize there will be a main effect of condition - the children who view the fast-paced video will have a lower retention rate than those who are shown the slow-paced video. One focus of the current study is on the videos themselves, including their quality, content, and pacing. While there is increasing work on overall use of technology in children, very little work has explored the content of the videos they are exposed to. This is a critical gap in the literature as there is a variety of videos available to children on YouTube that can include a wide range of content (e.g. instructions for crafts, playing with toys, nursery rhymes etc.). As children’s media moves from television to other forms the literature must also reflect the growing number of children switching from television based media and shows to those found on other sites such as YouTube.

Authors

• Reese Jackson, Oklahoma State University - Stillwater
  Presenting Author

• Sarah C Kucker, Southern Methodist University