Date of Award
5-2023
Document Type
Action Research Project
Degree Name
Master of Arts in Education
Department
Education
First Advisor
Mary Hedenstrom
Department/School
Education
Abstract
This action research was to study the impact of using technology (i.e.: iPad tablets and a media projector) on student’s social skills in an inspired Reggio Emilia Approach (REA) classroom. The setting was a class of four and five-year-old students in an urban early learning school in Minnesota. The study produced three data sources: 1) Data was collected by choosing three students at random, videotaping them each Wednesday for eight weeks and coding their interactions, 2) a teacher and students’ caregivers completed with questionnaires and 3) a journal with notes and other observations by myself. The study had a four-week baseline and a four-week intervention using technology Observation and coding showed improvement in social skills for two students but not for one student. Based on the questionnaires, teachers perceived that some children did better in social skills and some caregivers that the children were more interested in school while using technology. More research needs to be done with a larger sample size of early learning students when introducing technology and the effects on social skills. This research may be beneficial for early learning centers, schools, and preschools when introducing technology into their classrooms.
Recommended Citation
Nakaoka, Nancy L.. (2023). Impacts of Using the Reggio Emilia Approach to Technology on Social Skills in an Early Learning Classroom. Retrieved from Sophia, the St. Catherine University repository website: https://sophia.stkate.edu/maed/518