TODDLERS AND DIGITAL TECHNOLOGIES: OPPORTUNITIES, RISKS AND PROSPECTS FOR RESEARCH

The large-scale diffusion of digital technologies, the object of lively debate for some decades now, has deeply modified education and training contexts. (Ferri, Mantovani 2006, 2008; Gardner, Davis, 2013). Touchscreen media devices -given their ease of use -have made an especially significant contribution to increasing young children's access to digital technologies (Geist, 2012; Riva, 2014). This ongoing revolution is forcing educators and researchers to investigate younger children's engagement with tablets and smartphones, whether spontaneous or mediated by adults or peers, with a view to identifying the knowledge-acquisition, exploration and learning strategies deployed by children when interacting with digital technologies and redefining the educational roles, contexts and practices that will enable children to design and construct their own knowledge. Thus, in this paper, I outline the main themes emerging from the recent literature on young children's access to new technologies, with a particular focus on the limitations, risks and opportunities offered by these tools in relation to learning and literacy.