An investigation of digital text production practices in early years classrooms

Digital technology has become entangled in many children’s everyday lives. As such, learning to write or produce text through digital means is significant to children’s literacy development. However, what constitutes writing and text when children communicate and express themselves using digital technology is constantly evolving. In response, educational settings and teachers are grappling with these changes. Research acknowledges that more than ever, rapid increases in access to and sophistication of digital technologies has changed the ways we communicate (Lankshear & Knobel, 2011; Leu, Kinzer, Coiro, Castek & Henry, 2017). With this increase comes the rise of productive forms of communication as a dominant literacy, requiring people to communicate through digital means on a daily basis for work and leisure (Brandt, 2015). These changes necessitate the reimagining of early literacy education to adapt to current communication needs for children. For teachers, these changes to digital communication and literacy practices mean navigating new curriculum and pedagogical landscapes in order to support their learners. When teachers identify opportunities to explore practice, are provided with freedom to explore new territory, and recognise curricular needs for children, they can become inquirers into their pedagogies (Leach & Moon, 2008). This inquiry investigated the ways early years teachers’ pedagogies supported children to develop their use of digital technology for communicating or producing texts across five classroom cases. It investigated the spaces and opportunities for digital text production practices in early years classrooms, teachers’ pedagogical decisions when implementing these practices, and the interactions that occurred between human and non-human actors in response to pedagogical decisions.