Supporting Teachers and Families in Choosing Developmentally Appropriate Literacy Learning Apps for Young Children
Abstract: A report from the Campaign For Grade-Level Reading (Guernsey, et al., n.d., p. 21) identifies that without supporting parents in making choices about it, technology will not be the “game changer” we hope in terms of educational outcomes. This session will begin with a review of the demographics of educational mobile and tablet applications use by families with young children, with a strong emphasis on literacy focused applications. A review of the research on developmentally appropriate literacy based applications will be presented, providing participants with an understanding of characteristics of good apps. Participants will use this information to process an assessment rubric for choosing apps for young children. Lastly, the focus will move to identifying methods to support families in choosing good literacy based apps for young children. The ultimate goal is to increase both the participants’ understanding of good apps and their ability to support families in making choices.
Presider: Maria Susy Rogers, University of South Wales, Pontypridd, South Wales