Angela Kays

SLM-521-SU03

Article Critique # 2

6/14/03

No Author. (2001) Technology in Early Childhood Education. Retrieved June 6, 2003, from http://www.nwrel.org/request/june01/child.html

The article that I read is titled Child Development. The article discusses technology needs of a young child. These needs are evaluated through the five essential development dimensions. The five dimensions are Social and Emotional Development, Language Development, Physical Well-being and Motor Development, Cognition and General Knowledge and their approach toward learning.

Research shows that using technology for social language and cognitive skills is very positive for young children because it can provide new experiences that cannot happen in the real world. Research also shows that language development can be increased through the use of technology. It is easier for a young student to communicate via a computer keyboard rather than through pen and pencil communication. The final positive benefit is the ability of technology to represent actions that are not possible in the physical world to the young child.

Unfortunately there are negatives to the situation. To begin with use of technology needs to be limited because large use of technology can increase a child’s chance of obesity. Another downfall to technology is that it has the possibility of replacing human interaction. In order for this not to happen, a teacher must include strategies for increasing socialization. An example of a strategy is placing two seats in front of a computer so that children can work together to complete an activity.

I found this article very interesting because I have young children who enjoy technology. Their choices of technology are usually game oriented, like game boy or play station, although we do have a computer. The research in this article seems right on track. I know many children who predominately spend their time in front of the computer. They end up having hard time socialization and are usually heavier in weight. It is hard in a world where technology is all around us, to limit use in our children. But if you evaluate the pros and cons of technology use you can realize that the only thing that needs to be adjusted is time. Make the time on the computer as productive as possible and don’t forget to include unprogrammed playtime.