Rethinking Technology in Early Childhood Education and Care

Ireland’s Education Yearbook 2025/26, published by Education Matters, is now out, and I am delighted to have a chapter in the early childhood section. It sits alongside ten other chapters in the section edited by Professor Mathias Urban.

My chapter, ‘Rethinking Technology in Early Childhood Education and Care,’ grew out of our recent research with early childhood educators across Ireland. Much of the talk about technology and young children comes back to screens and how much time children spend on them. Those concerns are real, and educators raised them too. But in the chapter, I reflect on a different question. What is happening around the device? Who is talking with the child, and what are they making sense of together?

I also wanted to look at the pressure educators face. Some feel they should be doing more with technology. Others hold back because they’re unsure what it is for. Without clear guidance, settings are often left to work it out alone.

For me, children’s ability to make sense of a digital world doesn’t start online. It starts with conversations, storytelling and play.

Thank you to Education Matters and to Mathias Urban for bringing together such a varied and thoughtful collection.

Ireland’s Education Yearbook 2025/26 is available to order in print or digital form.