Originally posted by norah smith on September 29, 2019
I had my nieces over to visit recently and they insisted on downloading some apps on my phone that they could play with. As I was doing quick searches to see what was most recommended, I was a little taken aback when I came across a plethora of apps aimed at toddlers. I’m talking “recommended for ages 18 months” educational apps that are meant to improve hand-eye coordination, introduce problem-solving, and hold concentration for longer periods of time. I wasn’t shocked, per se. Of course there are apps for babies- there are apps for everything. It just got me thinking more and more about where my own line would sit for handheld screen time if I were to ever have kids.
There’s research that suggests that educational apps on mobile devices increase readiness for school in toddlers if used in moderation, but also research to suggest that tech time at a young age can be detrimental and lead to speech delay. A study conducted by the University of Toronto and Sick Kids found that “every 30-minute increase in handheld screen time per day resulted in a 2.3 times increased risk of expressive speech delay” in toddlers aged 18 months.
The Hospital for Sick Children. Mobile Media Device Use Is Associated with Language Delay in Infants, The Hospital for Sick Children, 21 Dec. 2018, www.sickkids.ca/AboutSickKids/Newsroom/Past-News/2018/screen-time-study.html.
Link to the full study can be found here.
With my own young children in mind, this topic has always been bouncing around in my head. The value of mobile learning to children I would say is relative to intent and planning.
If an adult just downloads a bunch of recommended apps for the age range or have an “educational” video playing for hours on end to keep children busy it isn’t really about the learning but more so keeping the child occupied (much like television in previous generations ). On the other hand, if you researched the content, tested it yourself and experienced it TOGETHER with your child there is an opportunity for learning together and social bonding.
How old must a child be to have their own mobile device? It really depends on the child and the intent of having it. I have taught a variety of children over the years and their are some that have a mobile device that they control and others that are controlled by their device. Parents/guardians have a responsibility to make that decision wisely despite peer pressure or keeping their children happy by meeting demands.
I think, like many things in life, moderation is key. There are many who use mobile learning/technology as a distraction to keep their child quiet. At that young of an age, babies/toddlers should be exploring and discovering the physical world around them instead of focusing on a screen. Learning from their surroundings is far more beneficial than through a screen when they’re so young. Besides intellectual development being affected, their physical development can be affected as well. Issues such as eye strain, neck pain, and back pain are affecting children at a much younger age than it used to as children are spending more time indoors and on devices than in the past.
https://www.healthline.com/health-news/screen-time-hurts-more-than-kids-eyes-101215#5
I think you also touched on what I consider one of the cornerstones for technology use with young children; what is the purpose of the use. In an educational context, introducing technology as a powerful tool they can use to achieve something (video chat, documenting learning, producing content to share with others) can be beneficial and educational. Technology as a distraction/entertainment has no place in the world of an early learner however, boredom teaches children more!
This is a very interesting and debated topic. It made me wonder how effective mobile education apps are for toddlers. I found another 2019 University of Calgary study with 2441 toddlers that showed more screen time can be linked to poor performance on development screening tests at 24, 36, and 60 months. The study shows association of increased screen time with delays in development in terms of communication, motor skills, problem solving, and social skills (Madigan, 2019).
I also wondered what health experts recommend in terms of screen time for kids. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends
• Avoid digital media for toddlers younger than 18 to 24 months other than video chatting. For children 18 to 24 months
• Limit screen use for preschool children, ages 2 to 5, to just 1 hour a day of high-quality programming.
From the sources I have reviewed in addition to Norah’s original post, it seems like mobile education through excessive screen time for toddlers does more harm than good.
References:
American Academy of Pediatrics. (2018, May 01). Children and Media Tips from the American Academy of Pediatrics. Retrieved May 31, 2020, from https://www.aap.org/en-us/about-the-aap/aap-press-room/news-features-and-safety-tips/Pages/Children-and-Media-Tips.aspx
Madigan, S., Browne, D., Racine, N., Mori, C., & Tough, S. (2019). Association Between Screen Time and Children’s Performance on a Developmental Screening Test. JAMA Pediatrics, 173(3), 244. doi:10.1001/jamapediatrics.2018.5056
It’s important to consider a wide range of developmental milestones, as Linda has here, when considering benefits or costs of an intervention. Focusing on speech alone, as the poster does, often doesn’t tell the whole story.
For instance, babies and toddlers taught to communicate via sign language may benefit from the ability to communicate emotions and needs earlier than they would if they had to wait until they could give the same message via words. The practice is often criticized as causing a “speech delay,” and that sounds scary because “speech delays” can be used to indicate a potential hearing or cognitive problem. However, in this case, a lack of words does not necessarily equal a lack of communication. Once children who initially learned to communicate via signs do develop speech, they catch up with the knowledge about conversation rhythms, emotional regulation, and sentence structure they developed months before their non-signing peers.
I’m not saying toddlers should necessarily have access to educational games. I’m only pointing out that language delay alone does not necessarily indicate a detrimental outcome.
Toddlers might not be my focus right now, but I don’t doubt the results of the different researches. Every coin has two sides. And I can’t answer the question of how young is too young for mobile education. But I do believe that’s something we as educators, and as a whole society we can and should figure this out as we did for problems like: “What’s the age range different levels of schools” and “What skills should a grade one student acquire after he finishes his first year in primary school,” and “What should be included in a science 10 course”? If we can figure that out, we should be able to figure out what electronic/ digital skills (to what extend) can be included in our curriculum.
A common problem nowadays is that teachers are using technologies (mainly Microsoft Office, simple editing tools) to present their class, but not really teaching the students how to use them. And many of us thought: “we did try new technologies to teach,” but do we actually how did the student receive those messages? Maybe they still receive them as if you did it through blackboard and chalks. When we can not really change the cognitive process of teaching and learning, using technology is merely changing the gimmicks of keeping the students’ attention.
Device use at this age is a definite concern when mobile device time replaces or takes away a significant amount of time that parents need to interact with their children in all ways, but especially ones that are appropriate for their intellectual development such as reading. Claims that Baby Einstein and similar educational technology products geared toward toddlers improve intelligence have been debunked by researchers, and I’m sure most research involving apps might have show the same results.
Originally posted by kimberley seto on September 29, 2019
Great post Norah. I still get taken aback when I see babies/toddlers still sitting in their strollers with a phone dangling right in front of them. It is still too early to say what the long-term impact of this early exposure can be, but it worries me to see companies already collecting data (tracking IP addresses, search histories, location, etc) to tailor their advertising. Plenty of lawsuits have been placed accusing these companies for violating the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Rule. It’ll be interesting to see where this all heads in the near future.