Student Guide: The Importance of Digital Technologies in Early Childhood Education

Introduction:

Digital technology has revolutionised the world and has achieved a dominant position globally. This innovation has transformed the methods of teaching and learning, and now are considered an important part of the education system (Timotheou et al., 2023). The education department of Australia has infused technology into the education system, by switching from traditional means of education to technology-integrated education. It has been reported by Qureshi et al. (2021) that using technology with young children poses a positive impact on the learning ability of the children and that the use of technology for the learning and development of children should be continued as it has shown positive results and links with positive experiences of learning among students. While, some studies have also claimed that technology and digitalisation in schools has posed a negative impact on the children in terms of physical and mental health (Small et al., 2020; Rocka et al., 2022). Therefore, this critical essay aims to advocate the claim that “the integration of digital technologies and media in early childhood curriculum is important for young children's learning and development”, using credible evidences and frameworks.  

Critical evaluation:

The prevalence of the use of digital technologies among young children has caused the Australian learning frameworks to induce digitalisation and technology into learning practices to keep children familiar with learning (Mantilla & Edwards, 2019). According to Spiteri and Chang Rundgren (2020), it has been believed by early childhood educators that using technology and media in the classrooms of young children provokes a familiar experience of learning among them. This use of information and communication technology (ICT) has created ease for the education providers to provide a technology-oriented learning experience to young children. In my opinion, this is indeed important for the children of the 21st century to stay in touch with technology, as the world is constantly revolutionising, therefore, the use of technology would be a good way to keep the young generation stay in touch with digitalisation.