Razali, Mahani (2006) A study of the effects of computer use on the social interaction behaviour of Malaysian children in the pre-school classroom. PhD thesis http://theses.gla.ac.uk/3955/ Copyright and moral rights for this thesis are retained by the author A copy can be downloaded for personal non-commercial research or study, without prior permission or charge This thesis cannot be reproduced or quoted extensively from without first obtaining permission in writing from the Author The content must not be changed in any way or sold commercially in any format or medium without the formal permission of the Author When referring to this work, full bibliographic details including the author, title, awarding institution and date of the thesis must be given. Glasgow Theses Service http://theses.gla.ac.uk/ [email protected] A Study of the Effects of Computer Use on the Social Interaction Behaviour of Malaysian Children in the Pre-School Classroom MAHANIRAZALI A Thesis Submitted in Fulfilment of the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Department of Educational Studies, Faculty of Education, University of Glasgow, UK October 2006 Declaration of Author's Copyright I declare, except where acknowledge, all the work has been undertaken by myselL AAA, Signaturc - Name of Author : MAHANI RAZALI Date : 2006 Copyright 2006 0 Mahani Razali ii ABSTRACT The purpose of this researchwas threefold fold: 1) to study peer interactions at the computer, 2) to study the interactions of the teacherswith the children and analyse the impact of those interactions on the childreWs social behaviour 3) to explore teacher's beliefs, views and knowledge about computers use in four Malaysian pre- schools. Qualitative researchwas employed using a multiple case study approach based on constructivism. Data were obtained primarily through non-participant observations,interviews with principals, teachersand children and documentations. The results indicated that children exhibited a considerableamount of positive social interaction behaviour while playing with the computer. A variety of patternscan be seen within the peer interactions indicating that children exhibit a vast range of social interactions at the computer and they varied each day. But for the purposeof the study the researcheronly concentratedon specific set of behaviour using the Children Social InteractionsBehaviour checklist The findings of this study guide us to certain conclusions,which have implications in understandingthe phenomenaof how computerswere used and how its relationship to the children's social interactions emergein the four Malaysian preschools. This study providesevidence that the children's social interactionswith peersand adults was mediated by the engagementof the children in the computer environments.Consistent with previousresearch, the children in my studymostly enjoyed using the computer.Children exhibited various contrastingbehavioural approachestowards computers. In classroomB, with one exceptionchildren were uninterestedin playing with computers.They actedas spectatorswho rarely spent time in the computercentre. In ClassroomA, C andD, all the focusedchildren acted as active and vicariousnavigators who were proficient and excitedabout playing or watching computer activities. The computer centre can effectively encourage supportivescaffolding interactionsamong children as they work side-by-sideto achievethe goalscreated by developmentallyappropriate software. Studies suggest that computeruse can provide a contextfor collaboration,co-operation, and positive learningexperiences between children, or betweenchildren and adults. This study indicates that computer activities with teacherfacilitation helped promote social interactions betweenchildren. Teacherswho observecarefully are likely to see that children who may seemto be minimumly and only superficially involved with their peers at the computer are actually learning by carefully observing their peers' success navigating developmentally appropriate software. Computer experts are valuable assetsto the classroom.Computer centresthat encouragecollaboration and cooperation make important contributions to the development of a community of learners and childreWs growing cognitive, fine motor, and social competencies. However, this will not necessarilyhappen just becausethe computer is presentin the early childhood education setting. Teachers must be conscious of the kinds of learning interactions they would like to occur in the context of computer use (including between adults and children, or between children), and adopt pedagogical strategiesto support thesesituations. iii From the case studies, it is also clear that the role of adults is vital in the computer centre and two types of teacherbehaviour occurred. One was a passiverole in which the teacher was only involved in computer use when she was askedby the children. This involvement was only as a technical help such as turning computer on or off The other type of teacher behaviour was in an active role that included being a technical helper, a conflict mediator and a tutor. Teacherswho exhibited an active role engagedin frequent scaffolding at the computer area by actually being involved in children's computer play. Teachers had limited information and understanding about the potential contribution of computers in early childhood education. The common belief of teachers was that computers could benefit children in self- confidence, academic areas and provide enjoyment for them. All teachersrevealed that computerswere not integratedinto the curriculum. Inadequate resources were enormous challenge for the two classrooms. All the classroom owned second hand computers that had limited memory capacity. The software collection of the classrooms mostly included drill and practice, game programs and few educational software both in English and Malay language.The curriculum philosophy of the classroomsdetermined how computers were used. In general, computers were used as a part of free play time activities. Children were encouragedto play with them independently. Children played with the computers with peers and adults except in ClassroomB (case study 2). None of the classrooms used the computers in other activities. This case studies also revealed that the curriculum was an important factor that determined how computers were used in early childhood classrooms. This study also carries severalserious implications for teachersand parents.First and most important, it highlights the rich social environment offered by computer usage. Teachers should take advantageof this opportunity for fostering such cooperative learning behaviours as sharing ideas and group problem solving. Second, gender variation was seen in the frequency of computer use, with the boys using the computer more than the girls. This pattern has been observed in other studies (e.g., Haugland & Wright, 1997). Teachersneed to monitor computer usage in order to ensure that girls have equal opportunities to use them. Teachersneed to assessthe levels of cooperation exhibited by different pairs of children and then decide on the optimum pairings. However, mixed-genderpartnerships led to greaterinteractions. It is interesting to note that almost all of the conflicts involved pairs of mixed-gender and also they produced the largest number of interactions. Therefore, it might be Worthwhile to continue mixed-gender groupings, if only to utilise this volatile and fertile opportunity for teaching conflict resolution, cooperativeproblem-solving, and group decision-making. Third, given the right directions, children are capable of resolving their own conflicts. Teachers,therefore, need to be careful about when they intervene and how much help they offer. Teachers and parents can better empower children by teachingthem appropriateconflict resolution strategies. iv ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Completing a doctoral degree requires a great deal of support and assistance.To those individual whose time, concern and efforts were given on my behalf, my deepestappreciation is extended. I would like to expressmy deepand sinceregratitude to my supervisor,Dr Maggie Pollock. Her wide knowledge and her logical way of thinking have been of great value for me. Her understanding,encouraging and personal guidancehave provided a good basis for the present thesis. It was a great pleasure for me to conduct this thesis under her supervision. I am deeply grateful to my second supervisor, Dr Alastair McPhee for his detailed and constructive comments, and for his important support throughout this work. I am indebted to my sponsor,Universiti Pendidikan Sultan Idris and the Malaysian Public Service Department.This researchand my study would not have been possible without financial support from them. I am very grateful to all the staff members at The Robert Clark Centre and Department of Educational Studies for their helpful and kind to me. During this work I have collaborated with many colleagues for whom I have great regard, and I wish to extend my warmest thanks to all those who have helped me with my work. Last but not least, I would like to thank my family for their irreplaceable support, understanding love, encouragementand forbearance throughout my study. Many great thanks go to my husband, Mohd Zuki who constantly supported and encouragedme throughout the entire process.I owe him the utmost debt of gratitude. My two lovely children, Siti Athirah and Luqman Hadi also deserveto receive my great thanks. I sincerely hope that my successwill inspire them. Finally my sincere