Advantages & Disadvantages Of ICT In ECE

Pros and Cons of ICT in Early Childhood Education

In times of rapidly developing countries, Malaysia has become more widespread use of ICT to all groups and it is not limited to the workers and adults only, but children are not left in the pace of globalization today. Children nowadays also know how to use computers. They can open and close the computer. They also can explore new things. School nowadays also have their own main subject that related to ICT or using ICT as their main tool of learning process either in preschool, primary school or secondary school. It is good for young children but the extent of ICT can bring benefits to children especially in early childhood education as well as ICT can bring harm to them.

The Benefits of ICT in Early Childhood Education

The child is receptive to new teaching and learning especially display material, colorful material, moving images, sound and image and anything that can attract children. ICT based learning is interesting on early childhood education because children like something different it is because they like to explore. It will accelerate the process of teaching and learning in preschool and also actually make it easier for teachers to teach the children using the ICT because in ICT there were many information that teacher does not able or does not have time to told to the children. Children actually like to hold something new. As an example, when the first time children can hold a computer by their own hand, see it by their own eyes, their curiosity further. These children often need only teach four or five times on how to start something on the computer and after that they have sufficient control on it. It is also one of the benefits of ICT to young children.

The other benefit of ICT in early childhood education is it can help children excellent in their education. When children were learn by ICT, they can explore or find anything that they want. At there, they will get new knowledge rather than just depending on teacher to tell them all things. Therefore, they were advance than their friend and because of that they can be excellent in their education because the children make an effort to learn by themselves by exploring it through ICT. For instance, Nazurah teacher teach about animal. In the class, the teacher just shows the picture of the animal. When Nazurah find in the internet, Nazurah can know about how the animal is moving, what are the animal sound, what the animals eat, and others. The above example shows that Nazurah learn by themselves by using the technology about animal and it can help Nazurah in her education and make her become excellent than others.

Based on the theories, Overton (2011) believes that by providing children with access to technology helps make the learning more exciting. He also said that technology can also be used to encourage group work with children, therefore encouraging children to be social while learning the social skills to share the computer with their peers. I believe that it is important for children to learn social skills in a wide range of curriculum areas as each area may require a child to use a different set of interpersonal skills. Other than that, Concordia University in Portland (n.d) believes that children who are using computer technology “will benefit from open-ended exploration rather than being confined to making a product”.

 

The next benefits is by Dockett and Fleer (1999), they suggest that when computers are used as a tool to teach the children they can be beneficial to children’s cognitive development. Clements (1992) as cited in Dockett and Fleer (1999), has done an extensive review on literature based on children and the use of computers, which states that children will find it easier to use a computer when it is in a word processing application, as the children may find it easier to press the buttons rather than using a pencil. Clements brings in the idea that handwriting can become tiring for children which could end in them not learning how to write correctly. It is because young children will be bored and easy to be tired when they need to write a lot hence, young children extension time is shorter than adult. Overton (2011) also claims that the use of technology can do to enhance skills, such as a child’s cognitive skills. However Wardle, (2008), suggests that introducing children to technology at a young age can mean that some developmental needs can be ignored or radically compromised such as a child’s physical development. Schiller (2010) also suggests that technology has a positive impact on brain development as it is helping to sharpen some cognitive abilities by learning to react more quickly to visual stimuli.

It is important for those centers that have technology in their curriculum; to ensure that it is has been integrated correctly to ensure that it can help to enhances children’s learning and development to its full potential. Wardle, (2008), expresses concern that if the technology is not integrated into the curriculum correctly it can have a negative impact on a child’s creativity. As an educator, we need to use the technology properly towards young children.

Disadvantages of ICT in Early Childhood Education

There is no doubt that computer technology can become a major platform of development in early childhood education. It was able to make the learning process in children more interesting, extensive and impressive. However, the main issue has always been on the agenda in the field of early childhood education is in terms of the effectiveness of multimedia learning elements. The use of ICT in early childhood education in teaching and learning sessions in a planned and appropriate to assist in the search for information and knowledge against a child. However, ICT in teaching and learning for early childhood have benefits to the children and also can harm them. As we look at the above advantages, there are also disadvantages of ICT to early childhood education. As an educator, we need to know the disadvantages of ICT before we apply it in our teaching method. Here I share mine and my group opinion about the disadvantages of using ICT in early childhood education. I hope it will help the others.

First and foremost, theorist Rowan (2014) states that the overexposure to the brain at a young age can be associated with attention deficit and cognitive delays. It also can be said by the delay of the development of the children. This could be due to the fact that the brain is not built to sustain extensive monitoring for long periods of time (Schiller 2010). It is because when the children know how to use the technologies, all things are prepare on their fingertips. What they want to know they just type and click and at there the children do not use their brain to think and just depend on the technologies to help them find information. It causes the delay of cognitive development because they do not use their brain to think.

The next disadvantage of ICT is children will be easily bored during learning process in classroom without using any ICT equipment. This will make them find it hard to understand the lesson and cannot give full attention when the teacher is teaching in front of the classroom. It is because they have been exposed to the technologies and internet teaching equipment by the teacher or by their parents during learning process either at school or at home. When they have been exposed to the technologies, they have also explore information beyond what they learn in the class and when the teacher teach the same thing it also can make the children feel bored. As an example, Sarah has been exposed by her parents on using technologies to find any information about what she wants to know. Sarah has known about the color and how to mix two colors to make the third color and she have practice it at home by her mother guidance. A few weeks later, Sarah teacher teach the children about the color and how to make the third color so, at here Sarah have been exposed to the same knowledge. When the teacher is teaching, Sarah was feeling bored because she have done that thing before and she have been exposed to that knowledge earlier.

Last but not least, the disadvantage of ICT in early childhood education is addicted. When children were exposed too much with internet and ICT equipment, they will be addicted to it and they will feel lazy to study. They also will not be able to learn on their own. They will think that ICT equipment is more interesting than learning in the classroom such as playing game, chatting and others. It is easy to become addicted to gaming, texting, talking on the phone or socializing online. Some children may attempt to do this in class which disrupts their learning, and at home it detracts from study time. Children putting in long hours on their gadgets will give less attention to homework and may be irritable when they are away from their gadgets. They might also sleep less because too focus on the gadgets. It can slow down the children thinking the next day.