Mapping and retention in children who learn through physical objects versus a tablet

Abstract

Children can expand their vocabulary through a variety of modes, such as face-to-face instruction and hands on teaching. Recently, technology has become a more prevalent way for young children to learn. As technology becomes more widespread, it has become more common for children to be introduced to technology at a young age. It is now a topic of debate if this technology should be used as a learning device, specifically if technology is an effective means for word learning. Our study investigates learning novel words and retention through physical objects compared to through a tablet. We hypothesized that the children who learn through a tablet will learn and retain the novel words less than the children who learn through physical objects. Independent samples t-tests were used to compare average accuracy between conditions (real objects vs. tablet) in each of the tasks. The results of this study displayed no significance difference for most of the word learning trials used in the study, the children were able to retain the new information with physical objects as well as with the tablet. However, when the objects were named in front of the child repeatedly and the child was then asked to choose the object by name later, it was found that the children that were shown the objects on the tablet retained the new information significantly better compared to the children shown the objects physically. It can be concluded from this that interactions with physical objects can be beneficial for a child's learning, but that tablet learning can also be a valuable way for a child to learn.