Twenty-fifth International Conference on Learning

Abstract

A report published by the Australian Department of Education and Training identifies significant increases in student suspensions in Queensland state schools over the past ten years. This trend includes five to six-year-old children, with an increase of over 76% in Preparatory student suspensions between 2012-2016. This paper consists of a literature review exploring the hypothesis that increased access to technology and hand-held devices may impact negatively on the physical, cognitive and emotional development of young children, increasing their risk of exhibiting behaviours that lead to school suspension. It pretexts a study being conducted in 2018, examining community perceptions and experiences regarding Early Years suspensions via an online survey, together with a government document analysis, to help identify effective ways to reduce behaviours that most frequently cause young students to be suspended. There is no denying the impact of technology on daily life in our contemporary society. Once a tool for the workplace or a vice for the wealthy, it is now impossible to get through a day without encountering technology of one description or another. Nowhere is technology more invasive than through media applications; much of our population is ‘plugged in’ from the moment we awaken to the moment we go to sleep. Our younger generation is the most rapidly-growing consumer of them all. So what effect does this constant stimulation have on their behaviour and wellbeing?