New Zealand early childhood services: Reasons for use or non-use of tablet computers

Abstract

With the increasing use of tablets in early childhood education (ECE) services internationally, a sequential explanatory mixed-method doctoral study was undertaken to explore their use in New Zealand. The study surveyed four major service types: education and care, home-based, kindergarten, and playcentre. Qualitative data from one tablet user service and one tablet non-user service from each type were then collected. The findings revealed three main reasons for not using tablets: educational philosophy, funding, and company or service policy. The three main purposes for using tablets were for documentation and assessment, playing music, and using these devices for creative purposes. A collective case study identified that two non-users shifted from completely not using tablets to using them for specific purposes, suggesting that tablet computer adoption in ECE is not binary. The data suggest that teachers and educators play a key role in deciding when and how to use tablets in ECE services. Tablet computer use was not limited to a dichotomy of use and non-use; rather their use in New Zealand’s ECE services was spread along a spectrum that ranged from limited, to specialised, to comprehensive use. This study suggests that access to and use of tablet computers is not fixed but varies according to services’ goals and educational philosophies.