Measuring with Murray: Touchscreen technology and preschoolers' STEM learning

• Published in: Computers in human behavior Vol. 62; pp. 433 - 441
• Main Authors: Aladé, Fashina, Lauricella, Alexis R., Beaudoin-Ryan, Leanne, Wartella, Ellen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.09.2016
• Subjects: Design engineering; Education; Human behavior; Informal learning; Interactive; Interactivity; Learning; Preschoolers; STEM education; Students; Tasks; Technical education; Touchscreens; Preschoolers; Interactivity; STEM education; Informal learning; Touchscreens
• ISSN: 0747-5632; 1873-7692
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chb.2016.03.080

American students rank well below international peers in the disciplines of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM). Early exposure to STEM-related concepts is critical to later academic achievement. Given the rise of tablet-computer use in early childhood education settings, interactive technology might be one particularly fruitful way of supplementing early STEM education. Using a between-subjects experimental design, we sought to determine whether preschoolers could learn a fundamental math concept (i.e., measurement with non-standard units) from educational technology, and whether interactivity is a crucial component of learning from that technology. Participants who either played an interactive tablet-based game or viewed a non-interactive video demonstrated greater transfer of knowledge than those assigned to a control condition. Interestingly, interactivity contributed to better performance on near transfer tasks, while participants in the non-interactive condition performed better on far transfer tasks. Our findings suggest that, while preschool-aged children can learn early STEM skills from educational technology, interactivity may only further support learning in certain contexts.