MEDIA SAVVYHOW TO NURTURE DIGITAL LITERACY

AND NAVIGATE THE WORLD (OR AT LEAST, THE WORLD WIDE WEB)

Michelle Albright, PhDDirector, Weston Youth Services

malbright@westonct.gov

It’s a brave and busy new world!

• Our language and lives have been transformed by technology

• Digital media & corresponding tools have changed the form and frequency of how we learn, play, work, communicate, and interact

• We have more exposure, access, and choices than ever before

• Our (and our children’s) media use also has more consequences than ever before

What’s out there?• White/smartboards• Television• DVD’s & DVR’s• Internet access• Video games (handheld or console)

• Cell phones• Tablets

• i-everythings• Multi-touch screens• Movie theaters• Radio• Portable music players

• Computers• Electronic toys• E-book readers

What’s the longest you’ve gone without Google?

How are kids today using media?• Children age 8 and under spend an average of 3 hours a day with media

• 1.5 hours are spent watching TV/DVD’s• 30 minutes are spent playing video, computer or handheld games

• 30 minutes are spent listening to music• Children between the ages of 8 and 18 are exposed to media for 10 hours and 45 minutes per day

(Common Sense Media, 2011; Kaiser Family Foundation, 2006)

A typical day of TV viewing• 37% of children under the age of 1 watch TV for an average of 53 minutes

• 73% of children between the ages of 2 and 4 watch TV for an average of 1 hour and 53 minutes

• 72% of children between the ages of 5 and age watch TV for an average of 2 hours and 2 minutes

• Children between the ages of 8 and 10 watch 2.5 hours of television and .5 hours of videos

Children between the ages of 5 and 9 spend about 1 hour per day reading

Daily use of other media• At age 3, about 25% of children use the internet daily

• By age 5, about 50% of children use the internet daily

• By age 8, more than 66% of children use the internet daily

• Between ages 4 and 5, about 20% of children use handheld video games

• By age 7, about 46% of children use handheld video games

• By age 9, more than 50% of children use handheld video games

•Why don’t you just ask Siri?

Media Multi-tasking

Using more than one type media simultaneously

orUsing one type of media for multiple tasks

orUsing media while engaging in real-life

interaction

Quality and quantity matter

Interactive vs. Passive

Designed to facilitate active and create use and encourage social

engagement vs.

Background media that leads to passive viewing

Child-directed vs. Adult-directed

Designed to complement and

promote children’s social and cognitive

developmentvs.

Not designed to be followed by

preschoolers and toddlers

But it’s “educational”......• Did you get your Baby Einstein refund?

• Showing doesn’t always equal learning

• Media is a teaching tool, not a teacher

• Media can reinforce but should never reduce or replace communication, play, interactions, or other developmentally appropriate interactions with peers, family members, and teachers

• What should we expect children to learn from media?

Potential benefits• High quality educational programs have shown benefits for children

• Co-viewing promotes social interaction and learning

• Digital tools can excite and engage children• Technology can optimize learning for children with special needs

• “Technology-handling” skills and digital/media-literacy are critical for educational and occupational success

Potential negative effects• Less time spent engaged in creative play • Less frequent and less meaningful interactions with peers and parents

• Less likely to learn and recall information from a video compared to a live person or presentation

• Potential for sleep difficulties, attention problems, aggressive behaviors, and higher rates of obesity

•Angry birds (alone!) won’t ruin your child

How can you enhance the benefits of media?

Albright’s 6 C’s (expanded from Guernsey’s 3 C’s)

•Content •Context

•Child •Communication

•Connection •Control

Try this at home.....

• Limit media use by children younger than 2• Make sure the content of media is cognitively, socially, and developmentally appropriate for your child

• Review and preview• Consider quantity and quality• Use media with your child – and talk about what you see and hear

• Use media to extend and expand learning• Monitor your child’s and your own media use

Be savvy about cyberspace• Model how to manage media• Protect your privacy and plan for your potential• A stranger is a stranger, even in cyberspace.• Use your manners when using media • A diamond is forever, and so is a digital image or link

• Big brother is watching (and so is big sister, and little sister, and your cousin’s, best friend’s, neighbor’s, father-in-law)

• Flag anything funky.

Internet Safety 101

• Keep computers in the center • Don’t let kids search alone.• Set content filters on your browser• Set content filters on your search engine• Use internet filters – filtering and blocking programs that prevent access to sites based on words/names

NetNanny, CYBERsitter, CyberPatrol, SafeEyes• Use kid-safe search engines, browsers, and sites like http://www.kidzui.com/ & http://www.pebblego.com/

• Use time limiting tools• Check in and check up on browser histories, FB pages, email accounts, and IM/texts

Resources – Media guides

• Common Sense MediaReviews movies, TV shows, apps, videogames, websites and books

to help parents make informed decisions about children’s media exposure and entertainment.

http://www.commonsensemedia.org/

• Children’s Technology ReviewA monthly PDF newsletter — modeled in the spirit of Consumer

Reports — that includes reviews of apps, software, games, and toys. (Does require a subscription fee)

http://childrenstech.com/

• Parents ChoiceProfessional and family reviews of books, toys, videogames and

software.http://www.parentschoice.org

A few of my (and my kids) favorites

Apps

• Don’t let the pigeon run this app!

• Ocarina• World Atlas• Weird But True (Nat Geo)

• Science 360• Bookworm

Shows & Movies

• The Cosby Show• Dirty Jobs• How It’s Made• Mythbusters

• Nim’s Island• Believe in Me• Night at the Museum

Resources – Media guidelines

•Lisa Guernsey•Director of the Early Education Initiative at the New America Foundation, a non-partisan think tank in Washington, D.C., where she focuses on how to scale up high-quality learning environments for young children, birth through age 8•http://www.lisaguernsey.com/articles&volume=1&issue=assumptions-about-screentime

•National Association for the Education of Young Children•Position statement on technology and young children•http://www.naeyc.org/content/technology-and-young-children

•American Academy of Pediatrics•AAP has published several policy statements on media usage by children and media education•http://pediatrics.aappublications.org/content/early/2011/10/12/peds.2011-1753

Resources – Media Use and Safety

• Common Sense Media Guide to Internet Safety• http://www.commonsensemedia.org/advice-for-parents/10-simple-steps-internet-safety

• Get Net Wise• http://kids.getnetwise.org/