Purpose
The purpose of the study is to investigate how children play with and without tablets (iPads) in kindergarten, and how this affects their play methods. The study focuses on differences in play using iPads and other objects, and whether these differences affect children’s learning and development.
Result
The study found that iPad play was largely epistemic, meaning that the children spent their time exploring the tablet, learning features, and solving problems in the apps. This applied in both age groups (two-year-olds and 4-5-year-olds). Play involving other objects, however, was more ‘ludic’, characterised by imagination, role play, and the use of symbols This type of play is considered especially important for the development of creativity and problem-solving ability. The researchers did not observe signs of such innovative, imaginative play in connection with the iPads.
Design
The data collection methods used in the study are observation and video analysis. The sample consisted of 21 children aged 4-5 years from a kindergarten in an area with medium socioeconomic status in 2015, and 9 two-year-olds from a kindergarten in an area with low socioeconomic status in 2020. The researchers video recorded the children’s free play with iPads and other objects in kindergarten. They used three different analysis methods to study the data material: indexing play activities, quantifying the index, and qualitatively describing the children's play.
References
Samuelsson, R., Price, S., & Jewitt, C. (2024). How young children’s play is shaped through common iPad applications: a study of 2 and 4-5 year-olds. Learning, Media and Technology, 49(2), 151–169.
Online year: 2022
Issue year: 2022
Review year: 2022