The challenge
Adults who educate and care for young children are exposed to mixed messages about what is in the best interests of young children in digital society. Such mixed messaging makes it difficult for adults to make decisions about the use of technology by young children.
This project addressed this problem by working with leading organisations providing services related to quality digital media production, online-safety education, digital play and digital parenting to identify the practices enacted and shared among children, families and educators in digital society. The aim was to create an online tool that would empirically inform service provision about digital technology use ‘with, by and for’ young children.
Project overview
This project aimed to build on the completed work of the Early Childhood Australia (ECA) Statement on Young Children and Digital Technologies by providing practice-advice for educators and families about digital technology use ‘with, by and for’ young children, in four areas of importance for participation in digital society:
- relationships
- health and wellbeing
- citizenship
- play and pedagogy.
The project brought together partner organisations and children, families and educators from diverse social settings including family day care, playgroup, kindergarten and long day care for collaborative research using participatory design.
Participatory design was used to integrate four investigations — one per area of the ECA Statement on Young Children and Digital Technologies, using methods including ethnography, longitudinal, quasi-experimental and intrinsic case study.
Outcomes
A new online tool was developed for the partner organisations to share exemplar practices benefiting Australian children, their families and educators with new resources, materials and programs in areas including digital media production, cyber-safety education, digital play and digital parenting.
This project supported organisations to use an empirically informed approach to service provision regarding using technologies in the best interests of young children.
Project team
The project brought together a strong team involving five universities (Australian Catholic University, Curtin, Deakin, La Trobe and Monash University) and six partner organisations. Other leading international scholars also worked with the team and were engaged in this research in an advisory capacity.
Project partners
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- Australian Federal Police
- The Alannah and Madeline Foundation
- Early Childhood Australia Inc
- eSafety Commissioner
- Raising Children Network (Australia) Limited
Funding
Australian Research Council (ARC- Linkage Scheme)
$556,000
Partner organisation funding
$650,976
Timeline
May 2020 – December 2024
Publications
Triggering the professional learning of early childhood educators through moments of disjuncture. Andrea Nolan and Deborah Moore (2026). Teaching and Teacher Education, 171, article 105353.
Broadening the notion of peer-to-peer interactions when young children engage with digital technology. Andrea Nolan and Deborah Moore (2025). Early Childhood Education Journal, 53, 1341–1353.
“I use technologies strategically with my family now”: Practices that parents value to promote physical activity in young children. Juliana Zabatiero, Laura Stone, Derek McCormack, David Zarb, Andrea Nolan, Kate Highfield, Helen Skouteris, Susan Edwards and Leon Straker (2024). Journal of Physical Activity and Health, 21(11), 1121–1131.
Young children’s agency with digital technologies. Andrea Nolan, Susan Edwards, Andi Salamon, Leon Straker, Susan Grieshaber, Helen Skouteris, Michael Henderson, Kate Highfield, Jacinta Bartlett (2021). Children and Society, 36(4), 541–563.
Rationale, Design and Methods Protocol for Participatory Design of an Online Tool to Support Industry Service Provision Regarding Digital Technology Use ‘with, by and for’ Young Children. Susan Edwards, Andrea Nolan, Michael Henderson, Susan Grieshaber, Kate Highfield, Andi Salamon, Helen Skouteris, and Leon Straker (2020). International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17(23), 8819.