So  Many  App  Reviews,  So  Li2le  Time:    

Guiding  Principles  for  Analyzing  and  Selec6ng  

Apps  Appropriate  for  Young  Children  

 Amanda  Armstrong,  M.S.  

TEC  Center  Program  Coordinator    

About  Erikson  Ins6tute  Our  vision  is  that  every  adult  who  works  with  young  children  or  on  their  behalf  will  be  knowledgeable,  aware,  skilled,  and  alive  to  the  possibili6es  of  each  child’s  life.    

Mobile  Tech  and  Media  

•  1,463  parents  of  children  age  8  and  under  •  May  20  –  June  12,  2013  

 

Uses  of  Mobile  Media  

Concerns  •  Overexposure  to  harmful  commercializa6on,  violence,  and  

inappropriate  content;  Nega6ve  influence  •  Hyperac6vity,  shortened  aWen6on,  and  emo6onal  problems  •  Contributes  to  risk  and  health  problems  •  Decrease  in  social  interac6on  and  crea6ve  play  •  Replace  tradi6onal  family  6me  ac6vi6es  •  Childhood  obesity  •  Disrupts  sleep  •  “Technology  Addic6on”  •  Less  6me  outdoors  

Paren6ng  in  the  Age  of  Digital  Tech  Center  on  Media  &  Human  Development,  Northwestern  U.  •  Na6onal  survey  [English  &  Spanish]  of  2,326  parents    •  Children  aged  eight  years  old  and  younger    

http://cmhd.northwestern.edu/?page_id=265

Approaches  to  technology  •  How  has  our  role  as  parents  and  caring  adults  changed  

with  the  increased  use  of  mobile  technology?  

•  How  do  we  ensure  we  use  quality  content  to  support  children’s  holis6c  growth?  

•  Consider  children’s  development  

–  Physical  –  Social-­‐emo6onal  

–  Cogni6ve  

Select  

Use  

Integrate  

Evaluate  

Technology  and  Interac6ve  Media  as  Tools  in  Early  Childhood  Programs  Serving  Children  from  Birth  through  Age  8  

Technology  Framework  •  Select  

– What  is  the  purpose  of  the  project?    Does  tech  fit?  Is  tech  going  to  support  the  goal(s)?    What  is  the  appropriate  &  effec6ve  tech  tool  that  will  balance  with  other  parts  of  the  project?  

•  Use  – How  will  tech  be  incorporated?    How  will  it  support  learning,  growth,  development,  and  rela6onships?      

 

Technology  Framework  •  Integrate  

– How  will  the  tech  be  included  in  other  parts  of  the  project?    Does  the  tech  stay  in  specific  area  or  will  be  placed  in  mul6ple  area  (consider  mobility)?  

•  Evaluate  –  Reflect.  Observe.    Were  the  goals  accomplished?    What  were  your  successes?    Is  there  something  that  would  have  been  done  differently?  

Selec6ng  Children’s  Apps  •  +  1  million  apps  in  App  Store  

•  +  1  million  apps  in  Google  Play    

•  +  100,000  apps  in  Windows  store  

•  +  100,000  apps  in  Amazon  App  store  

 What  are  some  approaches  you  use  to  navigate  through  app  selec6ons  in  these  stores?  

App  Review  Sites  •  List  individual  children’s  apps  with  reviews  •  Considera6ons  

– May  or  may  not  state  quality  measurement  system  

–  Reviewer  background  and  experiences  –  Length  of  business  –  Reputa6on/Credibility/Reliability  –  Personal  iden6fica6on  and/or  connec6on  –  No6fica6on  of  free  apps  – May  offer  advice  for  parents  and/or  educators  

App  Rubrics  •  Rubrics,  Evalua6on  Forms,  Frameworks,  Scales,  Guides  

•  Template  for  measuring  quality  on  any  app  •  Organiza6on  or  Individual  •  Considera6ons  

–  Quality  Measurement  System  –  Reviewer  Background  and  Experiences  –  Details  within  Categories  –  Reputa6on/Credibility/Reliability  –  References  to  Pedagogies  or  Models  

App  Ar6cles  and  Presenta6ons  •  Individual(s)  •  Present  recommenda6ons  for  evalua6ng  children’s  apps  and  media  

•  Considera6ons  –  Authors’  background  –  Type  of  Publica6on  –  Reputa6on/Credibility/Reliability  –  Experiences  

App  Resource  Comparison    •  11  Review  Sites,  25  Rubrics,  10  Ar6cles,  and  2  Presenta6ons    – Excluded  review  sites  without  listed  app  criteria  

•  Children’s  mobile  media  •  Parents  and/or  Educators  •  Individuals  and  Organiza6ons  

Lisa  Guernsey:  The  3  C’s  Guiding  Ques6ons  for  Comparison  

•  Content:  How  does  this  help  children  engage,  express,  imagine,  or  explore?  

•  Context:  How  does  it  complement  and  not  interrupt  children’s  natural  play?  

•  Child:  How  do  we  choose  the  right  tech  tools  and  experiences  for  each  child’s  needs,  abili6es,  interests,  and  developmental  stage?  

Sources  •  Fred  Rogers  Center  •  Children’s  Technology  

Review  •  Common  Sense  Media  •  Parent’s  Choice  Founda6on  •  Sesame  Workshop  •  Karen  Nemeth  •  Fran  Simon  •  Kathy  Schrock  •  Daniel  Donahoo  

•  Chip  Donohue  •  Cynthia  Chiong  •  David  Kleeman  •  Gail  Lovely  •  AppoLearning  •  Kindertown  •  Moms  with  Apps  •  Digital  Story6me  •  Best  Apps  for  Kids  •  AppySmarts  

Comparison  Findings  Differences  Content   Context   Child  

Store  and  share  data   Promote  ac6vi6es  outside  the  device  

Accommodates  DLL  and/or  ELL  

No  in-­‐app  purchases/  Free  of  ads  

Joint  media  engagement   Accommodates  children  with  special  needs  

Culturally  appropriate   Collabora6on  

CCSS   Classroom  integra6on  

Crea6vity  

Repeatable  

Comparison  Findings  Similari6es    Content   Context   Child  

Focus  on  specific  skill   Independent  Use/  Easy  to  Use  

Consider  children’s  diverse  abili6es  

Learning  objec6ve   Mul6ple  users   Consider  children’s  diverse  needs  

Feedback   Adaptable/  Modifiable  

Engaging/Entertaining   Age  appropriate  

Assessment  

Educa6onal  

Comparison  Takeaways  •  Content  and  design  are  developmentally  appropriate  

•  Children  can  use  independently  •  No  in-­‐app  purchases,  adver6sements,  or  inappropriate  content  

•   Save  and  share  with  others          

             

Draw  and  Tell  

Comparison  Takeaways  •  Opportuni6es  for  joint  media  engagement,  co-­‐crea6on,  and/or  collabora6on  

•  Support  children’s  learning  and  teacher  goals  •  Accommodates  children  of  different  abili6es  and  needs  

•  Repeatable    

Easy  Studio  

Comparison  Takeaways  •  Culturally  appropriate  and  inclusive  -­‐  celebrates  diversity  

•  Engaging  without  being  distrac6ng  •  Responsive  to  ac6ons  •  Interac6ve  •  Feedback      

Hair  Salon  Me  

Comparison  Takeaways  •  Accommodates  dual  language  learning  and/or  English  language  learners  

•  Encourages  explora6on  and  ac6vi6es  outside  of  mobile  device  or  construc6ve  learning  experiences  with  mobile  device  

ABC  Ac6on  

Show  and  Share  Share  apps  with  colleagues  that  highlight  these  ideas  What  are  your  thoughts  about  these  different  apps?  Do  they  fit  your  program,  goals,  students’  needs?  

Approaches  to  Selec6ng  Apps  •  Make  app  evalua6on  a  part  of  technology  framework  

•  Learn  the  perspec6ve  of  app  review  sites,  rubric  sources,  and  authors  

•  Consider  Lisa  Guernsey’s  3  C’s  –  content,  context,  and  child  

•  Technology  Playdates  –  show  and  share  with  professionals  and  parents  

Quality  Children’s  Media  

Top  5  Apps  that  Your  Kids  Will  Love  This  Week  by  Chris  Crowell  

Tech  and  the  Young  Child  Resources  

Tech  and  the  Young  Child  Resources  

           

www.teccenter.erikson.edu  

This  work  is  licensed  under  a  Creative  Commons  Attribution-­‐NonCommercial-­‐ShareAlike  3.0  Unported  License  

Photos  courtesy  of  Erikson  Ins6tute,  NAEYC,  Fred  Rogers  Center,  Early  Learning  Community  at  Pacific  University,  Burley  Elementary  School,  University of Maine Center for Community Inclusion and Disability Studies, Cassandra Mattoon and Chris  Crowell