One Classroom, One iPad, Many Stories

Abstract

Every day, we are surrounded by stories in print, on social media, in blogs, on the radio, and in stories from our friends and family. The ways people make meaning and communicate are increasingly multimodal and digital; yet, the preschool classroom, for all its multimodal learning, is sometimes devoid of technology. In this action research project, the authors integrated an iPad into a play‐based preschool classroom to support emergent literacy and playful storytelling. The students used multimodal and multi‐actor storytelling to collaborate, navigate their places in the classroom, and connect their school experiences to their home lives.

The impact of mobile application features on children’s language and literacy learning: a systematic review

“…The lack of theorizing around linking specific features of apps to specific learning goals is surprising given the volume of qualitative research which could be used to generate hypotheses. A large qualitative literature exists, based on observational and interview methods, which provides suggestive indications of how children use app features in language learning (Baker, 2017;Falloon, 2013;Fantozzi et al, 2018;Hutchison, Beschorner, & Schmidt-Crawford, 2012;Levinson & Barron, 2018;Mogyorodi et al, 2019;Terantino, 2016;Wang et al, 2020). For example, Wang et al (2020) suggested that good comprehenders may use app features in different ways to poor comprehenders, such as repetition of narration.…”

“…Qualitative studies indicate possible links between features of mobile learning devices and language learning outcomes (Baker, 2017;Falloon, 2013;Fantozzi, Johnson, & Scherfen, 2018;Hutchison & Beschorner, 2015;Levinson & Barron, 2018;Mogyorodi, Brathwaite, McGlynn-Stewart, Maguire, & Hobman, 2019;Terantino, 2016;Wang, Christ, & Mifsud, 2020). For instance, Fantozzi et al (2018) identified a number of supportive affordances of storytelling apps used by preschool children, such as the capacity for multiple voice input and sharing creations with parents. Observations after using the storytelling apps suggested that children were more confident in speaking, and in interviews parents reported having more conversations about their school activities at home.…”

“It’s Everyone’s iPad”: Tablet use in a play-based preschool classroom

“…In addition to children's agency in using the apps, the teachers were interested in using the iPad to tell child-led stories, and using technologies to connecting with families. We also discussed changes that needed to be made and the key concepts that we could take forward into the next the first year, the teachers and I wrote about how the iPad could be integrated into a play-based classroom (Fantozzi et al, 2018a) and the affordances of an iPad in emergent literacy development (Fantozzi et al, 2018b).…”

“…Early childhood teachers worry about the inclusion of technology to the exclusion of play. Although existing literature has established digital technologies as supportive of developing literacies (Fantozzi et al, 2018a; Kucirkova et al, 2019; Lynch and Redpath, 2014; Petersen, 2015) and utilized in play (Edwards et al, 2017; Fantozzi et al, 2018b; Lawrence, 2018), the inclusion of technology in play-based settings is not commonplace. This may be because, until recently (Jack and Higgins, 2019), many of these teachers have relegated technology to free play rather than the teacher child interaction seen in play-based instruction (Mertala, 2017).…”

“Technology Brings Learning to Life”: Planning Writing Opportunities through Multimodal and Digital Resources

“…As Edwards-Groves (2012) found, new pedagogical and literacy practices "have enabled students in their everyday life and in their classrooms to become multimodal designers of text, as writing now requires multimodality, creativity, and technological and technical creativity" (p. 99). Teachers who utilize multimodal methods often organize their curriculum activities so students engage with literacy curricula in a variety of ways: sometimes through sharing their out-of-school experiences (Fantozzi, Johnson, & Scherfen, 2017;Hull & Schultz, 2002), perhaps exploring cross-curricular writing in multimodal ways (Cook & Kirchoff, 2017;Jewitt, 2005), 'reading' the art in picture books in order to create a response (Martens, P., Martens, R., Doyle, Loomis, & Aghalarov, 2012), designing digital storytelling products (Hull & Katz, 2006;Shelby-Caffey, Úbéda, & Jenkins, 2014), or playing with and integrating digital technology (Hutchinson et al, 2012;Ware, 2006). These instances in the classroom, when teachers and learners expand what it means to be literate, can create spaces "for the blending of traditional and new literacy practices" (Shelby-Caffey et al, 2014, p. 199).…”