Throwback Thursday

Benjamin Franklin and his printing press in downtown Philadelphia.

Did you know that the invention of the printing press is considered to be the origin of media technology (Bryant & Pribanic-Smith, 2010)? This revolutionary invention shifted the power to share knowledge and information from the control of a few select rulers into the hands of the people. As a result, the printing press has played a significant role in advancing human communication.

In their position statement, the National Association for the Education of Young Children and the Fred Rogers Center (2012), note that the disruptive and rapid shift we see today from print to digital literacy is as significant as two previous shifts seen within our history - first, the shift from oral language to print literacy and second, access to printed works brought by the invention of the printing press.

Bryant, J., & Pribanic-Smith, E. J. (2010). A historical overview of research in communication science. In C. R. Berger, M. E. Roloff, & D. R. Roskos-Ewoldsen (Eds.), The handbook of communication science (2nd ed.) (pp. 21-36). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

National Association for the Education of Young Children & Fred Rogers Center for Early Learning and Children’s Media. (2012). Technology and interactive media as tools in early childhood programs serving children from birth through age 8. Retrieved from http://www.naeyc.org/files/naeyc/file/positions/PS_technology_WEB2.pdf

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