When visiting a centre I was given an iPad from a staff member and asked to use it to facilitate an experience with the children. It was a new resource in the centre and was incredibly popular amongst the children. I sat down on a mat outside and placed the iPad down in front of me. A group of about eight children gathered in front of me on the mat and began to offer their own experiences and knowledge of using iPads outside of the centre.
I had never seen or used an iPad before in my own life, and felt very nervous and unequipped for facilitating this activity with the children, however within a few minutes one young boy took lead of the experience by informing me that he knew how to get to the games. He took the iPad off me, then with ease used his finger to scroll across the pages and open the desired application.
The children took turns and supported each other’s’ learning and use of this piece of equipment, leaving me to observe and learn from the background. My role during this activity was to support the children in turn taking and stepping back to allow the children to engage in these naturally occurring tuakana teina relationships to support each other’s learning in the area.
I was surprised that so many of these three and four year olds were not only familiar but comfortable and competent in using this technology, that in contrast was so foreign to me, and although I believe I view children as “competent and confident learners and communicators” (Ministry of Education, 1996, p. 9) it had not even occurred to me that children of this age would have prior experiences with this form of advanced technology.
Upon reflection, I believe this preconceived notion of children’s ability has stemmed from my own experiences with technology, or lack thereof. I’ve found most digital technology intimidating and reserved for those with the expertise and knowledge required to use it. However, I have had to challenge my own thinking as Smorti reminds us that we are living in “a world that people have created and changed through technology” (1995, p. 5) and that the world that I grew up in is very different from the world children today are growing up in.
To ensure I am best meeting the needs of children, and creating a curriculum that reflects their world I feel is important to continue to reflect on my own practice (Yang, 2009) in regards to the use and importance of technology and children’s learning and development. I had no hesitation encouraging the children to take the lead in this learning experience as the concept of Ako is close to my heart. This Maori pedagogy refers to reciprocal learning, where the knowledge of both teacher and student are valued and combined to create new understanding (Ministry of Education, n.d.)
I believe this acknowledged and celebrated the skills and knowledge base these children could share with their peers and teachers. I also feel that this shift in power fostered community building, and pro-social skills which will positively impact on children’s long-term well-being and learning (MacNaughton, Williams, 2009).
I felt it was important to stay engaged in this activity even though I had incredibly limited knowledge of the technology itself. I instead used questioning techniques to try and extend and support the learning taking place (MacNaughton, Williams, 2009). After this experience, I went home and borrowed my flatmate's iPad, and using the new skills I had learnt earlier in the day I explored and played around with this new piece of technology - and to my surprise, had a lot of fun. I know now that this piece of technology is being used more frequently by preschoolers in their home environments, and to be able to strengthen these connections between the home and the center by using this tool effectively, I first need to extend my own knowledge and skill base in this area (Smorti, 1999).
I found this clip really highlights the changing role technology is playing our children’s lives today, compared to when we ourselves were children.
MacNaughton,
G., & Williams, G. (2009). Techniques for teaching young children:
Choices in theory and practice (3rd ed.). Frenchs Forrest, Australia:
Pearson Prentice Hall.
Ministry
of Education. (1996). Te Whāriki: He whāriki mātauranga mō ngā mokopuna o
Aotearoa : Early childhood curriculum. Wellington, New Zealand:
Learning Media.
Ministry
of Education.(n.d.) Te Reo Māori in English-medium schools. Retrieved
March 25,2013, from
http://tereomaori.tki.org.nz/Curriculum-guidelines/Teaching-and-learning-te-reo-Maori/Aspects-of-planning/The-concept-of-ako
Smorti,
S. (1999) Technology in early childhood. Early Education, 1, 5-10.
Yang,
s. H. (2009) Using blogs to enhance critical reflections and community of
practice. Educational Technology & Society, 12 (2), 11.21.
