Digital media have become a significant theme in children’s lives. This counts for games and playful explorations, digital literacy practices in homes, communities, day care centers, kindergarten and pre-schools. Results from the EU Kids Online project show that “children are going online more, at younger ages, and in more diverse ways” (EU Kids Online 2014, p. 6). However, there is a widespread uncertainness among parents and in educational institutions how to deal with digital media and which kinds of actions are needed from educators, childcare workers, as well as in the context of continuing education and educational policy. International data suggest that this is a worldwide phenomenon (DigiLitEY, WG 2, see: Kontovourki et al. 2017), but discussed rather nationally, without crossing borders. So far, there is relatively little empirical data from non-English-speaking countries being discussed internationally. That is especially true for media education in inclusive settings. As for early childhood media education, inclusion and exclusion are not only about the organization of modes and degrees of societal integration or contributions to social (in)justice and (un)equal opportunities. Dynamics of inclusion and exclusion are also about access to media technologies, media cultures and the development of related skills, knowledge and understanding.

The symposium brings together empirical results, theoretical considerations and reflections on media practices and curricular issues dealing with questions such as:

In what way is digital inclusion in early childhood education part of real serious problems, and in what way is it part of future oriented solutions?

How can children’s literacies and digital skills be further developed and more strongly supported?

How is children’s play changing in view of developments in media, technology and commercial media cultures?

Which strategies for overcoming educational gaps and conservative pedagogy (Bewahrpaedagogik) including populist forms of pseudo-scientific neuro-missionary are most promising?

How can young children’s online opportunities and digital skills be further developed, while at the same time, considering avoidance of total media control?

How should educators' expertise in the teaching and learning of digital and media literacy be further developed?

In this symposium, the terms ‘early childhood education’ and ‘early years education’ are used synonymously. The contributions to the symposium should enrich the international research and discussion with data from different perspectives, especially from German speaking countries such as Germany, Switzerland, and Austria.

The first contribution focuses on the awareness for mediatization and inclusion as part of teacher education in Germany. Results of the DoProfil-project at the Technical University of Dortmund suggest how to combine theory, practice and reflection in order to establish iT-PACK as teachers’ attitude. Digital media education, inclusion, pedagogy and content knowledge are brought together.

The second  contribution addresses recent developments in Germany. It is based on the results of an analysis of Kindergarten curricula and curricula for training and study programmes of kindergarten teachers.

The third paper discusses current curricula for Kindergarten and for the training of kindergarten teachers in Austria. The discussion of the curricula is illustrated by best practices for media literacy education in the Kindergarten that have been developed by future kindergarteners in an action research project.

The last paper gives an overview on current structures and practices in teacher education in Media Education for early childhood in Switzerland. It discusses principles of media education such as “Bewahrpaedagogik”, media education as health care, and tentative careful fostering of early media literacy.
A main challenge which underlines all contributions is a European perspective on media education in early childhood, which needs to be discussed in detail at the symposium.

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