Joint media engagement (JEM) as a design target for family science learning¶

Theory · All theories
Evidence · 10 claims (10 for) · 2 studies (2 design), q2 · 0 of 2 report an effect size · 10 claims rest on one study

Description¶

The paper's organizing framework is joint engagement with media (JEM): intentionally designed shared media experiences that support learning. The rationale states that "intentionally designed JEM experiences support learning by creating both 'in the moment' opportunities when content-rich media can be leveraged for learning during viewing, and affordances that inspire subsequent learning experiences." The second-screen app was designed to capitalize on families' current media and science practices to support science talk and joint engagement with content-rich educational media.

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Content-rich media that can be leveraged for learning during viewing
• Design that builds on families' existing media and science practices

Constraints¶

Target Learners¶

• Families of young children

Target Learning Objectives¶

• Shared science learning experiences during and after media viewing

Claims¶

• The usefulness of app components varied by child's age: conversation starters were too advanced for some younger children but helpful for older children [+M]
• Families who used the app's features more extensively reported stronger changes in joint media engagement and science [+M]
• Children in the intervention group initiated a higher proportion of science-related conversations before and after episode viewing, while concept understanding differences were not detected between groups [+M]
• In an out-of-the-box evaluation, 60% of parents accessed video clips and 52% accessed activities without prompting or instruction [+M]
• Over 70% of participants in the field and station studies rated the app a 4 or 5 for supporting children's science learning [+M]
• Parents and caregivers in the intervention group initiated more conversations before and after viewing and facilitated more science conversations than the comparison group [+M]
• In interviews, families who used the app's features more extensively seemed to have better internalized its purpose, and those who explored it most reported stronger self-reported changes in joint media engagement and science [+M]
• 44.8% of families used the sync feature; most of those enjoyed it, while 37.5% of non-users reported technical difficulties [+M]
• Most families used the Activities section and rated it highly helpful, with many completing two or more activities [+M]
• Nearly all participating families reported using the Splash and Bubbles for Parents app and found it helpful for supporting children's science learning [+M]

Related Theories¶

Examples¶

• Online Videos for Family Learning
• Differentiate conversation starters for first versus repeat viewings

Key Sources¶

• Digital Promise, The Jim Henson Company, Concord Evaluation Group, & Curious Media. (2021). Designing an app to support families' joint engagement with media: Design principles and lessons from research. [White Paper]. Digital Promise. https://doi.org/10.51388/20.500.12265/121