Young children (0-8) and digital technology: The National Report for Malta

The Malta National Report forms part of a Europe-wide project on the use of digital technologies by families with young children in Malta. The study, which was conducted in conjunction with the Joint Research Centre (JRC) of the European Union, discusses the level of technologisation of childhood in Malta, the use of digital devices by families, finding the right balance when using technology, and the changing role of parents and their concerns. Recommendations are made about the integration of digital and non-digital practises, promoting emergent literacy, internet safety, school curricula and teacher preparation, strengthening of home-school links, the role of libraries, use of technology in bilingual and multilingual settings, technology use policy, and public awareness about the impact of digital technologies.

"Most of the children were actively using digital devices since they were one year-old or earlier." (Mifsud & Petrova, 2017; p. 5). "TV watching was the most popular activity. The second most popular digital device was the smartphone and in third place was the tablet." (Mifsud & Petrova, 2017; p. 5). Parents supervised the children's use of digital devices. "It was common for the children to use their parents’ devices. The children had a sense of ownership, even though some of them did not have their ‘own’ device... Most of them learnt how to use the devices by observing their parents or by handling them on their own." (Mifsud & Petrova, 2017; p. 5). "The children used digital devices (tablet, smartphone, TV etc.) but played with traditional toys as well (dolls, ball, building blocks etc.)... Children were using digital devices more frequently than their parents thought." (Mifsud & Petrova, 2017; p. 6). "Many joint activities between the children and their parents involved the use of digital technologies (e.g. watching movies, playing games etc.). Digital devices were often used as a reward/punishment strategy by the parents." (Mifsud & Petrova, 2017; p. 6). "The parents recognised the importance of digital technologies for their children’s upbringing... The rules set by the parents about their children’s use of digital devices were changed according to the age of the children... The parents were aware of the risks associated with the overuse of digital devices and of unsupervised access to Internet. (Mifsud & Petrova, 2017; p. 6).