Discussion
Started 29th Mar, 2020

Which software could be appropriate for young children's nano-Literacy?

Which software may be user-friendly and educationally appropriate for early-primary school children which combining movement and sound can be used by digital (e.g. tablets) or non-digital technologies (e.g. desktops)?

Most recent answer

19th Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Thank you Katerina Tsarava for clarifying your answer in detail!

All replies (24)

29th Mar, 2020
Wolfgang Schoppek
University of Bayreuth
Please excuse me for writing my opinion here. I think young children (~ 4 yo) need to learn and experince many things other than software. What age are you talking about?
1 Recommendation
29th Mar, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Mr. Wolfgang Schoppek thank you for the answer, it helps me to define my question even more clearly. Although my focus is on early-primary school age (Grade 1 and Grade 2), it would be my pleasure to read your point of view on the above question even for the ages of younger or older children.
1 Recommendation
30th Mar, 2020
Yousif Yaqoob Shahtha
University of Baghdad
Attracting young children are the games that are most popular, so there are games in which types of puzzle can be a learning tool
30th Mar, 2020
Stamatios J Papadakis
University of Crete
I consider ScratchJr as a developmentally appropriate mobile application (but run also in PC as an open source initiative) for preschoolers to teach and learn CT, maths but literach as well through projects.
2 Recommendations
1st Apr, 2020
Roser Vendrell
Universitat Ramon Llull
Me preocupan los trabajos y opiniones de expertos donde se pone de manifiesto cuales són las consecuencias del exceso de las pantallas en los más pequeños. Por lo tanto como más pequeños sean los niños, menos software y más exploración y experimentación.
1st Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Ms. Roser Vendrell Thank you for your reply. Could you please write your opinion in English so that we can discuss together about?
1st Apr, 2020
Trilochan Sharman
Center for Activity Based Instruction, Nepal
Among those two digital and non digital I prefer digital combined with non digital.(Non digital here I mean most of concrete and hands on). the young learners at this age must be given opportunities to explore the digital software but should not have barrier towards hands on activities.
thank you
1st Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Thank you for all the answers.
1st Apr, 2020
Orlando M Lourenço
University of Lisbon
Unconditional love and acceptance, time to play social and individual games and learn things that are appropriate to his/her age.
2nd Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Professor Orlando M Lourenço Thank you for the answer. Love is always the right way. But could you please clarify the last part of your answer "...learn things that are appropriate to his/her age." What makes a "thing" educational appropriate for a child of a particular age?
2nd Apr, 2020
Orlando M Lourenço
University of Lisbon
Dear Pandora Dorouka,
It is my pleasure to clarify the last part of my answer. Try to teach the proportionality concept to a 4-year-old child. It will be a waste of time because at age the child is not cognitively prepared to learn such a concept. So, it would be inappropriate to try to teach that concept to that child.
2nd Apr, 2020
Orlando M Lourenço
University of Lisbon
Dear Pandora Dorouka,
It seems that you have some problems with recommending answers to your question.
2nd Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Professor Orlando M Lourenço , I am convinced that there is no waste of time when it comes to children's education. As Aristotle teaches us "Education is the kindling of a flame not the filling of a vessel". Thank you for such a creative discussion.
2nd Apr, 2020
Orlando M Lourenço
University of Lisbon
Surely, time spent with children's education is never a waste of time. Children's education is the best thing we can do in favor of them and nowhere have I said the contrary. Aristole's metaphor is just a metaphor. What is indisputable is that there are ages at which it is a waste of time to try to teach children concepts, laws or principles they cannot yet understand. Will it be possible to teach Newton's gravitational laws to a 3-year-old child? Do try and tell me the results.
1 Recommendation
3rd Apr, 2020
Ilan Bar Shalom
Israeli ministry of Education
Dear Pandora Dorouka, In these bad times of the pandemic spreading all over the world, raises one of the vastest dilemmas of education: What is education? Is it teaching and learning? then what to teach? How relevant is the teacher? How relevant is school? What is relevant to teach concerning what we go through? I think that the whole world of education is going through a great shake-up. After Coronavirus, education will not and must not go back to the same pattern. I myself have some suggestions about a change. you can see my articles. Even though they were written before the pandemic, they are relevant. Please read "Unleash instruction" or the fun story about "For the woman magazine". A big greeting of health!
1 Recommendation
3rd Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Mr. Ilan Bar Shalom Thank you for highlighting such an important issue in this discussion. The cutting-edge technology is urgent to be incorporated in young children’s education, since it is increasingly penetrating various aspects of our life, promising to solve global challenges. Achieving a society able to deal with their problems, as the pandemic fatal virus, is an elaborate task that requires the interaction of educational, academic and political factors. Unless young children are going to be the main future workforce for the cutting-edge technology, which is expected to substantially affect all aspects of human life and growth, then who else?
3rd Apr, 2020
Ilan Bar Shalom
Israeli ministry of Education
Pandora Dorouka, Thank you for your reply (I'm a doctor). Young pupils and the embedment of technology in education has a tremendous gap. Yet, I have a nice story for you. My father, may he rest in peace, use to collect pens. He had pens from all over the world. In spite of that, he went with simple stick pens that sometimes leaked ink and stained his shirt. Many years ago I asked him "Dady, you have the best pens in your collection, why do you go with such simple pens that leak in your pocket?" He replied," Son, it is not important what you write with, it is important what you write". That became my motto in education!
3rd Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Dr. Ilan Bar Shalom thank you. Through your opinion, it is even more emphasized how difficult is to prepare young children for the requirements of the 21st century. However, it is undeniable that new technologies have been developed in recent years, so maybe it is up to future research to bridge the “gap” you mentioned. Lev S. Vygotsky underlines for example "What a child can do today with assistance, they will be able to do by themselves tomorrow..." Thank you.
4th Apr, 2020
Gerardo Castañeda Garza
Tecnológico de Monterrey
May I ask you to develop further your question? Because there are many platforms that can be used, but I would to know more about the target setting (certain age, if it will physical or through internet, etc, if it requires a computer, board games, books, mobile phones).
1 Recommendation
4th Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Gerardo Castañeda Garza Thank you for your kind and helpful suggestion. I will try to reiforce the question.
18th Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Dear Katerina Tsarava thank you for your reply! But, can you please explain why you choose to give the example of this particular version of Scratch (ScratchJr) in relation to affordable early-primary school technologies?
Best wishes for a Happy Easter!
19th Apr, 2020
Pandora Dorouka
University of Crete
Thank you Katerina Tsarava for clarifying your answer in detail!

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