The 21st Century is the information age with the computer located in the center, so in child education many studies and programs related to computer education and software development have been coming out.
However, most of these studies concentrate o...
The 21st Century is the information age with the computer located in the center, so in child education many studies and programs related to computer education and software development have been coming out.
However, most of these studies concentrate on revealing the effects of using of computers on children's development. In addition, most of the developed software programs are from foreign countries, so there is a lack of domestic programs which fit the domestic situation.
Although much educational software is being sold, it is difficult to find software focusing on childhood music education and the software available is limited in scope and does not appeal to children. Therefore, it is necessary to develop diverse, special and interesting software for the purpose of childhood music education.
This study focuses on producing educational software for children which systematically introduces the basic concepts of music and was completed by developing software for aquisition concepts in child music and having children test the software in a controlled setting.
The music education software development team of 'c' institute took part in this study. Ten children participated in the study: 5 children of four years of age and 5 children of five years of age. The study was at 'c' kindergarten in Seoul and lasted for 7 days and its purpose was to check for content and technological problems.
The software program consists of 7 activities representing dynamics, tempo, beat, pitch, timbre, harmony and form. Each part includes an activity which children can use individually and teachers can use in class.
The benefits of educational music software for children outweigh the negative aspects. When children used the software, they had much interest in it and had positive reactions. In short, the software both enhanced their interest in learning and gave them a lot of information in a short time.
Though there are many kinds of educational software, music is particularly suited to the multi-media format. It will reduce the teacher's burden in teaching music and will support the teacher's music skills. In addition a child can study independently at his own skill level while focusing on his interests at any time or place.
Computers stimulate children's imaginations with sights, sounds, and actions more than other educational activities. Because of the computers effect on children, educational software must be developed to target children's interests, including the story, animation, narration and sound effects. In addition, the graphics must be composed in a way to hold children's attention and the buttons must be arranged so that children can easily use the software.
The drawbacks of the software include the cost for development and the number of people needed to develop it. However, it is worth the time and effort.
As our children grow up in the information age, it is important to use the best tools available to educate them. Educational software must be carefully developed because of it will decide the success of failure of computer education.