>
Young children in digital society: an online tool for service provision
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 addresses this problem by working with leading organisations that provide 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 is to create an online tool that will empirically inform service provision about digital technology use ‘with, by and for’ young children.
Project overview
This project aims 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 brings 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 is 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 will be 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 supports organisations to use an empirically informed approach to service provision regarding using technologies in the best interests of young children.
Project team
The project brings 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 have also worked with the team to date and will continue to be engaged in this research in an advisory capacity.
- Professor Susan Edwards (Australian Catholic University) (Lead CI)
- Professor Leon Straker (Curtin University) (Lead CI)
- Professor Andrea Nolan (Deakin University) (CI)
- Professor Michael Henderson (Monash University) (CI)
- Professor Susan Grieshaber (La Trobe university) (CI)
- Dr Andi Salamon (Charles Sturt University) (CI)
- Professor Helen Skouteris (Monash University) (CI)
- Dr Kate Highfield (Early Childhood Australia) (PI)
Project partners
- Australian Broadcasting Corporation
- Australian Federal Police
- The Alannah and Madeline Foundation
- Early Childhood Australia Inc
- eSafety Commissioner
- Raising Children Network (Australia) Limited
Timeline
May 2020 – December 2024
Funding
Australian Research Council (ARC- Linkage Scheme)
$556,000
Partner organisation funding
$650,976
More information
- Young children in digital society: An online tool for service provision
- National Catholic Education Commission eNewsletter (schoolzineplus.com)
- Susan Edwards, Andrea Nolan, Michael Henderson, Susan Grieshaber, Kate Highfield, Andi Salamon, Helen Skouteris, and Leon Straker. 2020. 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. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 17, no. 23: 8819.