With the boundaries swiftly being erased between formal and informal learning, and digital devices increasingly migrating between home and school, what are educational media developers’ “must-know” statistics, trends, insights and innovations concerning kids, families and educators?

1. Taking a
Byte of the
Teacher’s
Apple

3. There are digital ways to
Learn, Practice, and Play"
Videos
Music
Interac0ve
Games
Print
Ac0vi0es

4. Transmediated Learning "
Curriculum goals across a property ≠
teaching the same thing on all platforms"
"
Ideally, transmedia “pushes” kids to the"
"
✓ right content, on the "
✓ right platform, at the"
✓ right time"
"
and allows them"
“pull” content "
from the platform"
they want"

5. Case Study in Transmedia Learning"

6. Lesson 2:
The medium
does not define
the (learning)
message"

7. 1-5 scale
5= Strongly Agree
An ebook can be more than a book…"

8. …but still needs core literacy features"
Back
To
School
In
An
E-­‐reading
World,
Volume
2
Of
The
Abcs
Of
Kids
And
Ebooks,
PlayCollec0ve
and
Digital
Book
World,
2013

9. Offline is a medium too"

10. Kids as makers"
MaKey MaKey

11. Lesson 3:
We don’t need no
stinkin’ badges"

12. Gamification is not a panacea"
Gamification can help with short-term
engagement, but is not a long-term solution"
Intrinsic
Motivation
Extrinsic
Motivation

13. Instead, focus on the
learning design behind games"
• Producing and collaborating, not just consuming"
• Opportunities for informal assessment without “testing”"
• “Leveling up” and “Failing Up”"
• Personalization"
• “Learning Positioning Systems” (LPS) – orientation via a visual
display of progress, with instant feedback"

14. Lesson 4:
Kids do love to
learn, but it needs
to be byte-sized"

15. Kids are natural learners and explorers"

16. We have to keep time spent playing
in mind as we develop"
About 1/2 of
preschoolers spend
11-20 minutes playing
per session; 2/5 only
spend 5-10 minutes"
Source: Cooney Center. (2010). Learning: Is there an app for that?

18. The Closed-Creativity Continuum"
Closed" Creative"
We don’t just want
interactive flash cards…."
…but how do we assess
fully open creative?"

19. Kids make their own play
(no matter what you do)"
So empower them to PLAY"
“Make it theirs,
not yours”
– Lane Merrifield

20. Lesson 6:
We’ve still got a long
way to go with social-
emotional learning"

21. Communication is a key skill"
Being able to chat doesn’t
mean that kids are learning
communication"
And as we move to
virtual learning, we need
to spend time teaching
virtual social skills"
We still tend to develop
intra-culturally, not with
the global world kids
live in digitally in mind"

22. Lesson 7:
Parents are still figuring it all out "

23. • 900,000 iOS apps / 150,000 in Education"
• 48,000 kid app developers"
The Challenges of Scale"

24. Parents are prepared
to believe in Ed Tech…mostly"
Paren0ng
in
the
Age
of
Digital
Technology
Northwestern
University
Center
on
Media
and
Human
Development,
2013

25. Parents still place value on non-digital"
But, they will pay"
33% less for ebooks than
for print books."
Parents will pay more for
educational ebooks than
for those intended to
“entertain.”"
But that is still "
40% more than"
what they are"
willing to pay for an app!
Back
To
School
In
An
E-­‐reading
World,
Volume
2
Of
The
Abcs
Of
Kids
And
Ebooks,
PlayCollec0ve
and
Digital
Book
World,
2013

26. Parents still place value on non-digital"
Paren0ng
in
the
Age
of
Digital
Technology
Northwestern
University
Center
on
Media
and
Human
Development,
2013

27. But their definition of
“educational” value is changing"
22%
4%
25%
66%
18%
73%
74%
29%
81%
18%
So, what makes an app
educational for parents?
1. Promotes problem solving skills
2. Encourages creativity
3. Teaches topics in a subject area
4. Focus on specific skills
Core 21st Century SkillsSubject area focus
Source: PlayScience, Ruckus Reader Study

28. Back
To
School
In
An
E-­‐reading
World,
Volume
2
Of
The
Abcs
Of
Kids
And
Ebooks,
PlayCollec0ve
and
Digital
Book
World,
2013
But their definition of
“educational” value is changing"

29. Parents want data
…but not too much data!"
..but when they get too
much data they get
overwhelmed and “turn
off” (or feel guilty)."
When parents have
data, they become
more engaged in the
learning process…"

30. Lesson 8:
We have to focus
on the ecosystem
of learning"

31. We know that co-play enhances
and reinforces learning"
Siblings &
Cousins"
Parents &
Kids"
Grandparents
& Kids"

32. Provide simple-to-use, multidimensional resources"
We have to keep teachers in the loop"

33. Reading on Old Tablets?"
Back
To
School
In
An
E-­‐reading
World,
Volume
2
Of
The
Abcs
Of
Kids
And
Ebooks,
PlayCollec0ve
and
Digital
Book
World,
2013

34. Lesson 9:
Contextualized
learning builds
engagement"

35. Case Study on Context:"

36. Lesson 10:
We have a long way to go in
understanding how to teach
across platforms"

37. We’ve got smaller
tech “generations”"

38. Platforms for play
change by age"
Younger
kids
lean
toward
tablet
use,
whereas
older
kids
are
more
computer
and
gaming
system
oriented.
Source: PlayScience, Global Gaming Generations study – includes U.S., Mexico, Germany, China

39. Enter the (Research) Matrix"
Media/Mechanics"
Ages"

40. Let’s Play!"
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