Vol. 2 No. 3; February 2012
ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES OF INFORMATION-COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY USAGE FOR FOUR-YEAR-OLD CHILDREN, AND THE CONCEQUENCES OF ITS USAGE FOR THE CHILDRENS’ DEVELOPMENT
Jurka Lepičnik-Vodopivec, Ph.D. Associate professor University of Maribor Faculty of Arts Koroška cesta 160, 2000 Maribor Slovenia Pija Samec University of Maribor Faculty of Arts Koroška cesta 160, 2000 Maribor Slovenia Abstract
Information-communication technologies (ICT) are a part of our world and we use them every day. They represent an important source of information about us and others, as well as about local and world events. Besides that, ICT can also be very attractive for pre-school children, who acquaint with them very quickly. This article presents advantages and disadvantages of ICT usage for a four-year-old pre-school child and its potential consequences for the child’s development. The data was collected with the help of 130 parents. They were asked to fill out a questionnaire and share their opinions about their four-year-old children’s usage of ICT at home. We found out that in the case of four-year-old children the usage of ICT has its advantages and disadvantages, and that the consequences of its usage (positive and negative) would be approximately the same.
KEY WORDS: information-communication technology (ICT), pre-school child, advantages and disadvantages of
the usage of information-communication technology, consequences for the child’s development
1. INTRODUCTION
Information-communication technology (or ICT) is a common expression for a variety of different computer, information and communication devices (hardware), applications (software), networks (internet), and services. It is a general concept which encompasses all communication devices of the modern society and their usage. Its primary purpose is mediating information and enabling the communication process. When it comes
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