Investigation of Early Childhood Educators’ Screen Media Usage Patterns and Preferences in the Classroom

Abstract

The aim of this study is to gain a better understanding of how children's media is used in early childhood education environments in Turkey, more specifically, how audio-visual media items are used and how screen viewing time is mediated during school hours. This study further examines what content is most frequently shown to children in the classroom, how much and for how long, where children watch such content, and what sort of devices they use. It also probes into the criteria used by preschool teachers to choose products. The researchers drew on an online survey tool to reach out to early childhood educators with a variety of backgrounds. In total, 639 educators from both private and public schools who work with children aged 0 to 6 years took part in this study. A questionnaire with open-ended and multiple-choice questions was utilized to identify the screen media usage patterns and preferences of the teachers in the classroom. The results showed that many children in early childhood education settings are exposed to screen media during school hours. This study yielded that this is a practice performed primarily for educational purposes and usually limited to less than 30 minutes a day. Also, it concluded that educators mostly opted for cartoons for use in the classroom, considering the criteria such as age appropriateness, perceived educational value of the content, attractiveness, and formal features of the product.