The report, published by educational research body FutureLab, and basedon three PhD studentship projects, looked at how digital technology cansupport early years learning both in school and at home, and the issuesto consider in their design.
The study, From research to design: perspective on early years anddigital technologies, argues that early years learning is linked toshared physical and social activities involving children and adults, butthat digital technologies designed for the early years are often forindividual use and depend on equipment designed for adults, such as thecomputer keyboard. It blamed historic institutional and cultural factorsfor the lack of interactive technologies designed with young children inmind, saying that although schools in England are given e-learningcredits to buy educational software to suit personal computers, PCs wereoriginally designed to support office, desk-based use. It added thatinteractive whiteboards have become popular because they suit thetraditional methods of whole-class teaching from the front.
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