Poster Session 2: The Influence of Technology on Families

Presenters: Brandon McDaniel, Zachary Kaiser, Michelle Drouin, I. Joyce Chang, Rebecca Ward

Summary
Many schools have adopted programs where young children (kindergarten through grade 5) are given a device (tablet, laptop) for both school and home use. Most of the research has examined the potential impacts of these devices on in-school learning, while we sought to understand how school devices are used at home, impacts on learning and behavior at home, resources/training provided by schools, and associations between these variables. We examined parent self-report data and found that children use the devices for both academics and entertainment, parents perceive both positive and negative impacts on their child and family, using the device more often for entertainment was associated with more negative impacts, and less training from schools was associated with more entertainment use and negative impacts.

Objectives
-- To examine how school-issued devices are used at home by children in kindergarten through grade 5.
-- To examine parent perceived impacts of school-issued devices on learning and behavior.
-- To examine associations between use of school-issued devices in the home and child learning and behavior.

Subject Codes: technology, parenting, parenting education
Population Codes: middle childhood, early childhood education
Method and Approach Codes: parenting education, research, general