Empowering children to make and shape our digital futures – from adults creating technologies to children transforming cultures

• Published in: The international journal of information and learning technology Vol. 37; no. 5; pp. 279 - 293
• Main Author: Iivari, Netta
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Emerald Publishing Limited 09-11-2020
• Subjects: Children; Empowerment; Information Technology; Social Responsibility; Technology Education; Children; Education; Schools; Digital technology design; Empowerment
• ISSN: 2056-4880; 2056-4899
• DOI: 10.1108/IJILT-03-2020-0023

PurposeDigital technology education of children needs to be reconsidered. The purpose of this paper is to focus on empowering the young generation as regards digital technology. Digital technology education should reap the benefits of recent developments brought in by extensive, ongoing digitalization and prepare the young generation to manage and master in their technology rich future. The recent COVID 19 pandemic has made this particularly relevant and visible in the society. The young generation should adopt a proactive and critical stance toward digital technology and consider how design and technology can be used for making the world a better place.Design/methodology/approachThis commentary reviews literature on the complex concept of empowerment and suggests a model on the aspects to be considered when aiming at empowering the young generation as regards digital technology in the context of digital technology education.FindingsA model is proposed that comprehensively addresses empowerment of children as regards digital technology both at individual and collective levels and in mainstream sense as a relational and motivational construct as well as in critical sense in terms of collective empowerment, social responsibility and liberation of the oppressed.Research limitations/implicationsRadical renewal in the children's education is needed in the digital age. This model outlines aspects to be considered in such a transformation. The insights should be valuable for research communities addressing the topic of children's education in the digital age in general or the topic of children's digital technology education in particular.Practical implicationsThe model should also be of help for practitioners, i.e. teachers and facilitators working in informal learning spaces for developing children's digital education in practice.Social implicationsThe commentary addresses significant societal issues. It is actually not only children who should be empowered to engage in making and shaping our digital futures, but people in general. The model provides novel and valuable insights on what aspects to consider in such a significant endeavor.Originality/valueThe model proposed is novel and clearly needed in the research addressing this topic.