The DIGILIT Kids project aimed at exploring the literacy practices of preschool children in digital environments. The project, funded by the Research Committee of the Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, lasted for two years (12/10/2021 – 11/3/2023). Data were collected over four months through interviews, observation of children’s free interaction with digital media, and literacy artifacts. The research team conducted qualitative research, interviewing parents, preschool educators, and children, while, in parallel, observing children’s media use with different digital devices, during their school time and collecting their written and electronic works, before and during the research process. The research context was a public kindergarten classroom in Thessaloniki, Greece, with 20 children. The research highlights the need to recognize and include children’s informal practices in the school environment to facilitate infants’ emerging literacy in digital and conventional media.
Research team Maria Papadopoulou (Academic Coordinator), Professor, Department of Early Childhood Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki (Coordinator), Aikaterini Makri, Assistant Professor, Department of Language and Intercultural Studies, University of Thessaly, Evi Kompiadou, Dr. Kindergarten teacher, Dr. Eugenia Pangkourelia, and Aikaterini Gasparis, Graduate of the Department of Early Childhood Education, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki
Publication: Papadopoulou, M., Makri, K., Pagkourelia, E., Kombiadou, E., & Gaspari, K. (2023). Early literacy going digital: Interweaving formal and informal literacy learning through digital media. Journal of Early Childhood Literacy, online first 3, August 2023, https://doi.org/10.1177/1468798423118998