After extensive research I found no legislation in New Zealand that is aimed directly at technology use in early childhood education services, but the Ministry of Education have developed a document which details the policies around ICT in early childcare settings, as well as acts as a guideline for Centre’s to use when writing their own policies involving ICT. This document is called “ICT Infrastructure. Security and Cybersaftey: Policy and guidelines for Early childhood Education Services” and the full document can be found through the link below.
ICT
Infrastructure: Policy and guidelines for early childhood education services: http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CCIQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lead.ece.govt.nz%2F~%2Fmedia%2FLead%2FFiles%2FEarlyChildhoodICTStandardsSecurityv04.doc&ei=vhsyVcvcA4bHmwX5hIGgAw&usg=AFQjCNG8tXVo99dn3peERfwAY_5A__vDPw&sig2=bbV7kgoHbsLTT9qa4AkXNA
In the
document the Ministry of Education (2008) states that the purpose of this document
is to guide early childhood services to put in place policies and practices
that ensure “the security of business data by preventing; unauthorized access,
corruption, accidental loss, and inappropriate use” and to ensure “the security
of children by protecting them from; inappropriate material, inappropriate
persons, exploitation, and accidental harm” (p. 4).
The document
states that it is the responsibility of the educators and all those involved
with early childhood services that have a collective responsibility to adhere
to the policies and guideline that the Ministry of Education has written. The document
includes details about all aspects of safety and security with ICT discussing Wi-Fi
use and internet security as well as answering questions such as:
·
What
ICT equipment is acceptable?
·
What
activities are acceptable?
·
What
material is unacceptable?
·
What
is cybersafety?
The document
also includes links to websites that may be beneficial for parents and staff
who may have concerns or queries about ICT use in early childhood services, the
links cover a range of issues including radiation. You can find these links on
the full document in the link above and there are two links below.
BECTA: How to plan the safe installation of ICT in schools:
http://schools.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=re&catcode=ss_res_env_02&rid=152&pagenum=1&NextStart=1
The National Radiation Laboratory of the Ministry of Health:
The document
is very thorough and considers every aspect of ICT use in early childhood
services and details the safe practices that need to be followed by all within
the settings. Reading this document has really put a spin on my opinion of
technology use in early childhood services. Before reading this document I was
unaware of the policies and guidelines that were put in place and therefore was
under the impression that technology use was not as thoroughly regulated. I am
now feeling more on the fence regarding the use of technology in early
childcare settings as I can see how it can be beneficial if the policies and guidelines
in this document are followed appropriately within settings.
References:
Ministry of Education. (2008). ICT Infrastructure, Security and
Cybersafety: Policy and guidelines for early childhood education services.
Retrieved from source: http://www.google.co.nz/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=2&ved=0CCIQFjAB&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.lead.ece.govt.nz%2F~%2Fmedia%2FLead%2FFiles%2FEarlyChildhoodICTStandardsSecurityv04.doc&ei=vhsyVcvcA4bHmwX5hIGgAw&usg=AFQjCNG8tXVo99dn3peERfwAY_5A__vDPw&sig2=bbV7kgoHbsLTT9qa4AkXNA
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