Archives
Current issue
About
About us
Aims and Scope
Abstracting and Indexing
Editorial Office
Open Access Policy
Publication Ethics
Journal History
Publisher
Follow us: Twitter
Contact
For Authors
Editorial Policy
Peer Review Policy
Manuscript Preparation Guidelines
Copyright & Licencing
Publication Fees
Fee Waiver Policy for Doctoral Students
EJMSTE Language Editing Service
More
Statistics
Special Issues
Special Issue Announcements
Published Special Issues
RESEARCH PAPER
Children’s digital competence in early childhood education: A comparative analysis of curricula
1
School of Applied Educational Science and Teacher Education, Philosophical Faculty, University of Eastern Finland, FINLAND
2
School of Social Sciences, Media, Film and Education, Department of Education, Swinburne University of Technology, AUSTRALIA
3
Faculty of Education, Monash University, AUSTRALIA
Publication date: 2023-01-06
EURASIA J. Math., Sci Tech. Ed 2023;19(1):em2215
KEYWORDS
ABSTRACT
Children’s digital competence (DC) is often poorly supported in early childhood education (ECE).
Furthermore, common definition of DC is difficult to find. Therefore, the aim of this comparative
curriculum study was to better understand how objectives and content of DC are defined in ECE.
Australia and Finland curricula were analyzed applying theory-driven content analysis. The results
indicated that in both countries theoretical basis of DC was present: objectives and content of DC
referred to (1) technical skills and practices, (2) applying digital technologies, (3) evaluate digital
technologies critically, and (4) motivation to participate in a digital culture. However, aims,
content, and practical guidelines on the curricula were unclear. This study recommends that ECE
curricula should better emphasis and make explicit the key elements of DC and how to holistically
foster children’s DC in practice. Further studies to clarify the important elements of DC in ECE
curricula frameworks is required.
REFERENCES (101)
1.
Alexiadou, N., & Stadler Altmann, U. (2020). Early childhood education research in Europe: Contexts, policies, and ideas. Education Inquiry, 11(2), 89-93, https://doi.org/10.1080/200045....
2.
Ampartzaki, M., & Kalogiannakis, M. (2016). Astronomy in early childhood education: A concept-based approach. Early Childhood Education Journal, 44(2), 169-179. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643....
3.
Arnott, L., & Duncan, P. (2019). Exploring the pedagogic culture of creative play in early childhood education. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 17(4), 309-328. https://doi.org/10.1177/147671....
4.
Arnott, L., & Yelland, N. J. (2020). Multimodal lifeworlds: Pedagogies for play inquiries and explorations. Journal of Early Childhood Education Research, 9(1), 124-146.
5.
Arrabal, A. A., & Zhang, J. (2016). The new models of public policy on early childhood education and care in Spain: Trends and implications. In M. F. Astiz, & M. Akiba (Eds.), The global and the local (pp. 115-131). Brill Sense. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94....
6.
Australian Government Department of Education and Training. (2019). Belonging, being and becoming–The early years learning framework for Australia. https://docs.education.gov.au/....
7.
Bailey, J. O., & Bailenson, J. N. (2017). Immersive virtual reality and the developing child. In F. C. Blumberg, & P. J. Brooks (Eds.), Cognitive development in digital contexts (pp. 181-200). Academic Press. https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0....
8.
Barab, S., & Dede, C. (2007). Games and immersive participatory simulations for science education: An emerging type of curricula. Journal of Science Education and Technology, 16(1), 1-3. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10956....
9.
Benenson, G. (2001). The unrealized potential of everyday technology as a context for learning. Journal of Research in Science Teaching: The Official Journal of the National Association for Research in Science Teaching, 38(7), 730-745. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.10....
10.
Bers, M. U. (2018). Coding and computational thinking in early childhood: The impact of ScratchJr in Europe. European Journal of STEM Education, 3(3), 08. https://doi.org/10.20897/ejste....
11.
Bers, M. U., Flannery, L., Kazakoff, E. R., & Sullivan, A. (2014). Computational thinking and tinkering: Exploration of an early childhood robotics curriculum. Computers & Education, 72, 145-157. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comp....
12.
Bers, M. U., González-González, C., & Armas–Torres, M. B. (2019). Coding as a playground: Promoting positive learning experiences in childhood classrooms. Computers & Education, 138, 130-145. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comp....
13.
Berson, I. R., Luo, W., & Yang, W. (2022). Narrowing the digital divide in early childhood: Technological advances and curriculum reforms. Early Education and Development, 33(1), 183-185. https://doi.org/10.1080/104092....
14.
Binkley, M., Erstad, O., Herman, J., Raizen, S., Ripley, M., Miller-Ricci, M., & Rumble, M. (2012). Defining twenty-first century skills. In P. Griffin, B. McGaw, & E. Care (Eds.), Assessment and teaching of 21st century skills (pp. 17-66). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94....
15.
Blackwell, C. K., Lauricella, A. R., & Wartella, E. (2014). Factors influencing digital technology use in early childhood education. Computers & Education, 77, 82-90. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comp....
16.
Blake, S., Winsor, D., Burkett, C., & Allen, L. (2011). Developmentally appropriate technology practice: Exploring myths and perceptions of early childhood and instructional technology professionals. Journal on School Educational Technology, 6(3), 35-48. https://doi.org/10.26634/jsch.....
17.
Blundell, R., Costa Dias, M., Joyce, R., & Xu, X. (2020). COVID-19 and inequalities. Fiscal Studies, 41(2), 291-319. https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-5....
18.
Bowen, G. A. (2009). Document analysis as a qualitative research method. Qualitative Research Journal, 9(2), 27-40. https://doi.org/10.3316/QRJ090....
19.
Boyd, W., & Phillips, A. (2021). Getting it right for early childhood teacher programs in Australia. In W. Boyd, & S. Garvis (Eds.), International perspectives on early childhood teacher education in the 21st century (pp. 1-16). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-98....
20.
Branscombe, N., Burcham, J., Castle, K., Surbeck, E., Dorsey, A., & Taylor, J. (2014). Early childhood curriculum: A constructivist perspective. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/978020....
21.
Caena, F., & Redecker, C. (2019). Aligning teacher competence frameworks to 21st century challenges: The case for the European digital competence framework for educators (Digcompedu). European Journal of Education, 54(3), 356-369. https://doi.org/10.1111/ejed.1....
22.
Chen, J. Q., & Chang, C. (2006). Using computers in early childhood classrooms: Teachers’ attitudes, skills, and practices. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 4(2), 169-188. https://doi.org/10.1177/147671....
23.
Colvert, A. (2020). Presenting a new hybrid model of ludic authorship: Reconceptualizing digital play as ‘three-dimensional’ literacy practice. Cambridge Journal of Education, 50(2), 145-165. https://doi.org/10.1080/030576....
24.
Craft, A. (2012). Childhood in a digital age: Creative challenges for educational futures. London Review of Education, 10(2), 173-190. https://doi.org/10.1080/147484....
25.
Danby, S., Fleer, M., Davidson, C., & Hatzigianni, M. (Eds.). (2018). Digital childhoods: Technologies and children’s everyday lives. Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-98....
26.
Deuze, M. (2006). Participation, remediation, bricolage: Considering principal components of a digital culture. The Information Society, 22(2), 63-75. https://doi.org/10.1080/019722....
27.
diSessa, A. A. (2018). Computational literacy and “the big picture” concerning computers in mathematics education. Mathematical Thinking and Learning, 20(1), 3-31. https://doi.org/10.1080/109860....
28.
Early Childhood Australia. (2018). Statement on young children and digital technologies. ECA. https://doi.org/10.23965/ECA.0....
29.
Edwards, S. (2013). Digital play in the early years: A contextual response to the problem of integrating technologies and play-based pedagogies in the early childhood curriculum. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 21(2), 199-212. https://doi.org/10.1080/135029....
30.
Edwards, S., & Bird, J. (2017). Observing and assessing young children’s digital play in the early years: Using the digital play framework. Journal of Early Childhood Research, 15(2), 158-173. https://doi.org/10.1177/147671....
31.
Eshet-Alkalai, Y. (2004). Digital literacy: A conceptual framework for survival skills in the digital era. Journal of Educational Multimedia and Hypermedia, 13(1), 93-106.
32.
Fedorov, A., Levitskaya, A., & Camarero, E. (2016). Curricula for media literacy education according to international experts. European Journal of Contemporary Education, 17(3), 324-334. https://doi.org/10.13187/ejced....
33.
Ferrari, A. (2013). DIGCOMP: A framework for developing and understanding digital competence in Europe. European Commission. https://doi.org/10.2788/52966.
34.
Finnish National Agency for Education. (2018). National core curriculum for early childhood education and care (Regulations and guidelines 2018:3c). Suomen University Press.
35.
Fox, J. L., & Diezmann, C. M. (2017). The Australian early years learning framework and ICT: A part of life or apart from life? In I. Li, J. Fox, & S. Grieshaber (Eds.), Contemporary issues and challenge in early childhood education in the Asia-Pacific region (pp. 143-163). https://doi.org/10.1007/978-98....
36.
Gallardo-Echenique, E. E., de Oliveira, J. M., Marqués-Molias, L., Esteve-Mon, F., Wang, Y., & Baker, R. (2015). Digital competence in the knowledge society. MERLOT Journal of Online Learning and Teaching, 11(1), 1-16. https://doi.org/10.19173/irrod....
37.
Garvis, S., Harju-Luukkainen, H., & Flynn, T. (2018). A descriptive study of early childhood education steering documents in Finland, Sweden, and Australia around language immersion programs. Asia-Pacific Journal of Research in Early Childhood Education, 12(3),1-22. https://doi.org/10.17206/apjre....
38.
Green, B. (1988). Subject-specific literacy and school learning: A focus on writing. Australian Journal of Education, 32(2), 156-179. https://doi.org/10.1177/000494....
39.
Halász, G., & Michel, A. (2011). Key competences in Europe: Interpretation, policy formulation and implementation. European Journal of Education, 46(3), 289-306. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1465....
40.
Hardy, I., & Uljens, M. (2018). Critiquing curriculum policy reform in Finland and Australia. Transnational Curriculum Inquiry, 15(2), 50-82. https://doi.org/10.14288/tci.v....
41.
Harju-Luukkainen, H., & Kangas, J. (2021). The role of early childhood teachers in Finnish policy documents–Training teachers for the future? In W. Boyd, & S. Garvis (Eds.), International perspectives on early childhood teacher education in the 21st century (pp. 65-80). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-98....
42.
Hatzigianni, M., & Kalaitzidis, I. (2018). Early childhood educators’ attitudes and beliefs around the use of touchscreen technologies by children under three years of age. British Journal of Educational Technology, 49(5), 883-895. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.1....
43.
Havu-Nuutinen, S., Kewalramani, S., Veresov, N., Pöntinen, S., & Kontkanen, S. (2022). Understanding early childhood science education: comparative analysis of Australian and Finnish curricula. Research in Science Education, 52(4), 1093-1108. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165....
44.
Havu-Nuutinen, S., Sporea, D., & Sporea, A. (2017). Inquiry and creativity approaches in early-years science education. In E. Kimonen & R. Nevalainen (Eds.), Reforming teaching and teacher education: Bright prospects for active schools (pp. 89-116). Brill.
45.
Hsin, C. T., Li, M. C., & Tsai, C. C. (2014). The influence of young children’s use of technology on their learning: A review. Journal of Educational Technology & Society, 17(4), 85-99.
46.
Ilomäki, L., Paavola, S., Lakkala, M., & Kantosalo, A. (2016). Digital competence–an emergent boundary concept for policy and educational research. Education and Information Technologies, 21(3), 655-679. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639....
47.
Jack, C., & Higgins, S. (2019a). Embedding educational technologies in early years education. Research in Learning Technology, 27, 2033. https://doi.org/10.25304/rlt.v....
48.
Jack, C., & Higgins, S. (2019b). What is educational technology and how is it being used to support teaching and learning in the early years? International Journal of Early Years Education, 27(3), 222-237. https://doi.org/10.1080/096697....
49.
Jones, I., & Park, Y. (2015). Virtual worlds: Young children using the internet. In K. Heider, & M. Renck Jalongo (Eds.), Young children and families in the information age (pp. 3-13). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94....
50.
Joseph, P. B. (Eds.). (2011). Cultures of curriculum. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/978020....
51.
Jung, S. E., & Won, E. S. (2018). Systematic review of research trends in robotics education for young children. Sustainability, 10(4), 905. https://doi.org/10.3390/su1004....
52.
Kalogiannakis, M., Ampartzaki, M., Papadakis, S., & Skaraki, E. (2018). Teaching natural science concepts to young children with mobile devices and hands-on activities. A case study. International Journal of Teaching and Case Studies, 9(2), 171-183. https://doi.org/10.1504/IJTCS.....
53.
Kazakoff, E. R. (2015). Technology-based literacies for young children: Digital literacy through learning to code. In K. Heider, & M. Renck Jalongo (Eds.), Young children and families in the information age (pp. 43-60). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94....
54.
Kermani, H., & Aldemir, J. (2015). Preparing children for success: Integrating science, math, and technology in early childhood classroom. Early Child Development and Care, 185(9), 1504-1527. https://doi.org/10.1080/030044....
55.
Kewalramani, S., Kidman, G., & Palaiologou, I. (2021). Using Artificial Intelligence (AI) interfaced robotic toys in early childhood settings: A pedagogy for children’s inquiry literacy. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 29(5), 652-668. https://doi.org/10.1080/135029....
56.
Kewalramani, S., Palaiologou, I., Arnott, L., & Dardanou, M. (2020). The integration of the Internet of Toys in early childhood education: A platform for multi-layered interactions. European Early Childhood Education Research Journal, 28(2), 197-213. https://doi.org/10.1080/135029....
57.
Kivunja, C. (2015). Teaching students to learn and to work well with 21st century skills: Unpacking the career and life skills domain of the new learning paradigm. International Journal of Higher Education, 4(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.5430/ijhe.v....
58.
Krieg, S. (2010). The professional knowledge that counts in Australian contemporary early childhood teacher education. Contemporary Issues in Early Childhood, 11(2), 144-155. https://doi.org/10.2304/ciec.2....
59.
Krumsvik, R. J. (2011). Digital competence in the Norwegian teacher education and schools. Högre Utbildning [Higher Education], 1(1), 39-51.
60.
Kumpulainen, K., Sairanen, H., & Nordström, A. (2020). Young children’s digital literacy practices in the sociocultural contexts of their homes. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, 20(3), 472-499. https://doi.org/10.1177/146879....
61.
Lauricella, A. R., Herdzina, J., & Robb, M. (2020). Early childhood educators’ teaching of digital citizenship competencies. Computers & Education, 158, 103989. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.comp....
62.
Lindahl, M. G., & Folkesson, A. M. (2012). ICT in preschool: Friend or foe? The significance of norms in a changing practice. International Journal of Early Years Education, 20(4), 422-436. https://doi.org/10.1080/096697....
63.
Manches, A., & Plowman, L. (2017). Computing education in children’s early years: A call for debate. British Journal of Educational Technology, 48(1), 191-201. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.1....
64.
Mantilla, A., & Edwards, S. (2019). Digital technology use by and with young children: A systematic review for the statement on young children and digital technologies. Australasian Journal of Early Childhood, 44(2), 182-195. https://doi.org/10.1177/183693....
65.
Marklund, L. (2020). Swedish preschool teachers’ experiences from pedagogical use of digital play. Journal of Early Childhood Education Research, 9(1), 171-193.
66.
Marsh, J. (2016). The digital literacy skills and competences of children of pre-school age. Media Education, 7(2), 178-195.
67.
Marsh, J., Arnseth, H. C., & Kumpulainen, K. (2018). Maker literacies and maker citizenship in the MakEY (makerspaces in the early years) project. Multimodal Technologies and Interaction, 2(3), 50. https://doi.org/10.3390/mti203....
68.
Martín, S. C., González, M. C., & Peñalvo, F. J. G. (2020). Digital competence of early childhood education teachers: attitude, knowledge, and use of ICT. European Journal of Teacher Education, 43(2), 210-223. https://doi.org/10.1080/026197....
69.
McKernan, J. (2008). Curriculum and imagination: Process theory, pedagogy, and action research. Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/978020....
70.
Mertala, P. (2020). Young children’s perceptions of ubiquitous computing and the Internet of things. British Journal of Educational Technology, 51(1), 84-102. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.1....
71.
Mertala, P. (2021). The pedagogy of multiliteracies as a code breaker: A suggestion for a transversal approach to computing education in basic education. British Journal of Educational Technology, 52(6), 1-15. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.1....
72.
Newhouse, C. P., Cooper, M., & Cordery, Z. (2017). Programmable toys and free play in early childhood classrooms. Australian Educational Computing, 32(1).
73.
Ogegbo, A. A., & Aina, A. (2020). Early childhood development teachers’ perceptions on the use of technology in teaching young children. South African Journal of Childhood Education, 10(1), 1-10. https://doi.org/10.4102/sajce.....
74.
Oranc, C., & Kuntay, A. C. (2019). Learning from the real and the virtual worlds: Educational use of augmented reality in early childhood. International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction, 21, 104-111. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcc....
75.
Orben, A. (2021). Digital diet: A 21st century approach to understanding digital technologies and development. Infant and Child Development, 31(1), e2228. https://doi.org/10.1002/icd.22....
76.
Palaiologou, I., Kewalramani, S., & Dardanou, M. (2021). Make-believe play with the Internet of Toys: A case for multimodal playscapes. British Journal of Educational Technology, 52(6), 2100-2117. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjet.1....
77.
Papadakis, S. (2020). Robots and robotics kits for early childhood and first school age. International Journal of Interactive Mobile Technologies, 14(18), 34-56. https://doi.org/10.3991/ijim.v....
78.
Parette, H. P., Quesenberry, A. C., & Blum, C. (2010). Missing the boat with technology usage in early childhood settings: A 21st century view of developmentally appropriate practice. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37(5), 335-343. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643....
79.
Plowman, L., Stevenson, O., McPake, J., Stephen, C., & Adey, C. (2011). Parents, pre‐schoolers, and learning with technology at home: some implications for policy. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 27(4), 361-371. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1365....
80.
Pöntinen, S., Kärkkäinen, S., Pihlainen, K., & Räty-Záborszky, S. (2019). Pupil-generated questions in a collaborative open inquiry. Education Sciences, 9(2), 156. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsc....
81.
Redecker, C., & Punie, Y. (2017). European framework for the digital competence of educators: DigCompEdu. Publications Office of the European Union. https://joint-research-centre.....
82.
Rosen, D. B., & Jaruszewicz, C. (2009). Developmentally appropriate technology use and early childhood teacher education. Journal of Early Childhood Teacher Education, 30(2), 162-171. https://doi.org/10.1080/109010....
83.
Rosenfeld, D., Dominguez, X., Llorente, C., Pasnik, S., Moorthy, S., Hupert, N., Gerard, S., & Vidiksis, R. (2019). A curriculum supplement that integrates transmedia to promote early math learning: A randomized controlled trial of a PBS KIDS intervention. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 49, 241-253. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecre....
84.
Serriere, S. C. (2010). Carpet-time democracy: Digital photography and social consciousness in the early childhood classroom. The Social Studies, 101(2), 60-68. https://doi.org/10.1080/003779....
85.
Sullivan, A., & Bers, M. U. (2016). Robotics in the early childhood classroom: Learning outcomes from an 8-week robotics curriculum in pre-kindergarten through second grade. International Journal of Technology and Design Education, 26(1), 3-20. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10798....
86.
Taguma, M., Litjens, I., & Makowiecki, K. (2012). Quality matters in early childhood education and care: Finland. OECD Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1787/978926....
87.
Thorpe, K., Hansen, J., Danby, S., Zaki, F. M., Grant, S., Houen, S., Davidson, C., & Given, L. M. (2015). Digital access to knowledge in the preschool classroom: Reports from Australia. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 32, 174-182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ecre....
88.
Thumin, N. (2012). Self-representation and digital culture. Palgrave MacMillan. https://doi.org/10.1057/978113....
89.
Ucar, S. (2015). The use of technology in teaching science to young children. In K. Cabe Trundle, & M. Sackes (Eds.), Research in early childhood science education (pp. 167-184). Springer. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94....
90.
United Nations Sustainable Development Goals Together 2030 Agenda. (2019). Realizing the SDGs for all: Ensuring inclusiveness and equality for every person, everywhere. https://sustainabledevelopment....
92.
van den Akker, J. (2003). Curriculum perspectives: An introduction. In J. van den Akker, W. Kuiper, & U. Hameyers (Eds.), Curriculum landscapes and trends (pp. 1-10). Kluwer Academic Publishers. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94....
93.
van den Akker, J. (2010). Building bridges: How research improve curriculum policies and classroom practices. In J. van den Akker (Ed.), Beyond Lisbon 2010: Perspectives from research and development for education policy in Europe (pp. 177-195). Consortium of Institutions for Development and Research in Education in Europe.
94.
Vartiainen, H., Tedre, M., & Valtonen, T. (2020). Learning machine learning with very young children: Who is teaching whom? International Journal of Child-Computer Interaction, 25, 100182. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ijcc....
95.
Wang, F., Kinzie, M. B., McGuire, P., & Pan, E. (2010). Applying technology to inquiry-based learning in early childhood education. Early Childhood Education Journal, 37(5), 381-389. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10643....
96.
Wang, Y., Lavonen, J., & Tirri, K. (2018). Aims for learning 21st century competencies in national primary science curricula in China and Finland. EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science & Technology Education, 14(6), 2081-2095. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmst....
97.
Ward, H., (2007). Using their brains in science: Ideas for children aged 5 to 14. SAGE. https://doi.org/10.4135/978144....
98.
White, H. S. (2015). Early childhood teacher perspectives of developmentally appropriate use of computer applications [Doctoral dissertation, Walden University].
99.
Wohlwend, K., Keune, A., & Peppler, K. (2016). Design playshop: Preschoolers making, playing, and learning with squishy circuits. In K. Peppler, E. Rosenfeld Halverson, & Y. B. Kafai (Eds.), Makeology: Makerspaces as learning environments (pp. 83-96). Routledge. https://doi.org/10.4324/978131....
100.
Wyse, D., & Ferrari, A. (2015). Creativity and education: Comparing the national curricula of the states of the European Union and the United Kingdom. British Educational Research Journal, 41(1), 30-47. https://doi.org/10.1002/berj.3....
101.
Yilmaz, R. M. (2016). Educational magic toys developed with augmented reality technology for early childhood education. Computers in Human Behavior, 54, 240-248. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.....
Share
RELATED ARTICLE
| eISSN: | 1305-8223 |
| ISSN: | 1305-8215 |
We process personal data collected when visiting the website. The function of obtaining information about users and their behavior is carried out by voluntarily entered information in forms and saving cookies in end devices. Data, including cookies, are used to provide services, improve the user experience and to analyze the traffic in accordance with the Privacy policy. Data are also collected and processed by Google Analytics tool (more).
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
You can change cookies settings in your browser. Restricted use of cookies in the browser configuration may affect some functionalities of the website.
