Young Children’s Use of ICT in Shanghai Preschools

Abstract

In the context of ever-increasing presence of information communication technologies (ICT) in young children’s living and educational environments, early childhood education (ECE) policies and curriculum have begun to emphasise the importance of integrating ICT into early childhood practices and provide guidelines for the use of ICT in ECE settings. The current study aims to get a clearer picture of young children’s use of ICT in preschools and develop a better understanding of their experiences with the use of ICT in the classroom. Data were collected from a survey with 316 teachers in 20 public preschools and observations of young children’s ICT activities in two case study classrooms, as part of a larger study. The results show that many children had competences and high interest in using ICT and experienced pleasure and success during their ICT activities, but their overall access to ICT was low, and active and meaningful ICT use was very limited. This paper concludes by suggesting the provision of sufficient reliable hardware and appropriate software for young children to explore the potential of ICT. And EC teachers need to develop effective pedagogies that can support the children’s learning with and through the use of ICT.