The computer as a toy and tool in the home: implications for schools and teachers

This paper presents the findings of a recent research project into children’s access to and use of computers in their homes. The study involved over 400 children who regularly used a computer at home. The children were aged between five and twelve and came from a variety of social, economic and cultural backgrounds in urban Sydney. Significant themes that emerged from the discussion included issues of equity and access, the variety of use of computers, the ways children learned to use them in their homes and children’s perceptions of differences between computing at home and at school. Each of these themes is discussed in terms of the implications for schools and teachers.