Generation alpha media consumption during COVID‐19 and teachers' standpoint

Abstract

With the development of digital technologies that are part of everyday life, new cultural norms and patterns are developing with which children play, learn, communicate, and socialise in the digital age. Technologies are also fundamentally changing teachers’ attitudes to education. This study aims to determine the motivation of teachers of generation Alpha for using technology and mobile applications, what technologies were preferred by generation Alpha after the second wave of the Covid‐19 pandemic, and for what reason. The research sample included one segment of the Alpha generation, pupils of primary schools (N = 53) and their primary school teachers (N = 83). A qualitative research design was used. The data processed by thematic content analysis identified the themes associated with using digital tools by generation Alpha, according to the teachers. The results showed the teachers’ motivation for using digital technology with generation Alpha, such as meeting their physiological, safety, social, cognitive, aesthetic, and self‐actualisation needs. Generation Alpha’s media applications saturated four needs: entertainment, information, education, and games. They were covered by 12 applications. The findings show that the digital communication activities of generation Alpha refer to the audience’s intentionality, selectivity, and involvement with the media. The presented research opens other possible research topics, such as how new communication and mobile apps influence the behaviours of Alpha generation, value orientation, and well‐being, and how effectively to use mobile apps in education praxis.