ERIC Number: EJ1299966
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021-Feb
Pages: 16
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1360-1431
EISSN: N/A
Investigative Activity in Pre-Primary Technology Education--The Power Creatures Project
Rönkkö, Marja-Leena; Yliverronen, Virpi; Kangas, Kaiju
Design and Technology Education, v26 n1 p29-44 Feb 2021
The present study explored pre-primary students' investigative activity during a longitudinal, integrative technology education project: the Power Creatures project. Investigative activity refers to the way young children act in a learning context that combines inquiry-based activities with creative hands-on activities, such as designing and crafting. Nineteen pre-primary students (aged five to six years) and two teachers participated in the case study. The main data set consisted of six video-recorded small-group sessions in which the children experimented with electronics and designed and made felted creatures containing soft circuits. The data were analysed using a theory-based, deductive content analysis. The results indicate that playful, investigative activities support pre-primary students' learning of everyday technologies and that children can transfer their understanding of the technological process from one situation to another. This process requires careful pedagogical planning and scaffolding that maintains the longitudinal process and adapts to its established and evolving goals.
Descriptors: Preschool Children, Technology Education, Preschool Education, Investigations, Learning Activities, Active Learning, Inquiry, Creative Activities, Design, Electronics, Electronic Equipment, Play, Transfer of Training, STEM Education, Art Education, Kindergarten, Foreign Countries
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education; Elementary Education; Kindergarten; Primary Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Finland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A