ABSTRACT
Touch-based electronic devices have brought much debate to the education profession. Richtel (2010) reported concerns that these devices may bring distractions to children, create attention problems, and if overused, children may become addicted to some iPad games (Adams, 2014). Others have found that using the iPad helps stimulate 2-year-old children’s creative and intellectual potential (Geist, 2012), enhances children’s focus, facilitates different learning styles, and helps boost children’s learning levels (Wilkinson, personal communication, 2010). In addition, an action research study by Hodgson (2013) suggests that 5- and 6-year-olds can use higher order thinking skills to independently create content in music using touch interface technology. Nevertheless, the essential nature of children’s interactivity with the iPad in all its potential richness has received little attention (Tu, Cslovjecsek, Pérez, Blakey, & Shappard, 2014). Examining the natural developmental inclinations of young children and the cultural environment in which they live has the potential for increasing our understanding of child development through the use of the touch screen tablets.
