Oxford University Press launches augmented and virtual reality EYFS app for pre-school children and parents

The Little Oxford app, which also links to the Oxford International Early Years Curriculum, is designed to help parents and carers support their children with early years education at home.

The ‘pioneering new Augmented Reality’ (AR) app aims to offer a learning through-play experience to ease the transition to primary school.

The education publisher said that the app harnesses the latest AR and virtual reality (VR) technology from EdTech developer Inception XR, to ‘create a fun and engaging, collaborative learning experience for young learners and their parents or carers.’

Little Oxford was developed with early years specialist Sue Cowley. The app aims to support three- to five-year-olds in becoming confident learners, while developing their digital literacy, an increasingly important skill for children, in a safe and educational virtual environment.

To coincide with the launch OUP has released new research, which finds that almost two-thirds of parents (61 per cent) believe smartphone and tablets support their child’s development.

While four in five parents (82 per cent) reported concerns around online safety, the overwhelming majority of parents surveyed believed that smartphone and tablet exposure is vital to child’s early education in today’s increasingly digital world. Two-thirds believe that children whose parents spend time using apps with them know how to keep themselves safer online later on in life.

The OUP study, carried out last May with market research agency Opinium, surveyed 2,000 parents and carers of three- to five-year-olds across the UK about their own and their child’s screen time use.

Helen Freeman, director of Early Childhood & Home Education at Oxford University Press, said Little Oxford would give parents the confidence to support screen-based learning at home, in ‘a safe, fun and collaborative way.’

'Digital literacy has become a vital part of classroom education in the UK, and it is clear from this report that parents of pre-schoolers are highly aware of the many benefits of digital tools for young children.

‘However, we also know how vital it is for parents to have access to safe and informative screentime, which is why we are delighted to launch our Little Oxford app.

‘Little Oxford is created by our educational experts, built on our decades of knowledge of how children learn. It brings together the best of our educational expertise combined with the latest AR technology.’

The in-app activities are also linked to a free parent platform Oxford Owl, with offline resources available for parents and children to enjoy together, ensuring parents can vary their child’s screen use.

Sue Cowley, early years specialist who worked on Little Oxford, said, ‘Little Oxford offers a fun way to get your little learners interacting with stories and starting to build their literacy and numeracy skills. The Little Oxford app gives you a great way to get your little one learning through fun, play based activities. Perfect to help them get ready to start school.’

A limited version of the Little Oxford app is free to download and trial, with the full app available with a subscription of £15 for three months or £30 for the year.

There are no in-app purchase options, which OUP said meant parents could be reassured that young children can enjoy the app safely. 

Other screentime study findings

OUP's research found that nearly nine in ten parents (88 per cent) agree that educational apps support their child’s learning of the national curriculum.

However, one in three parents still play down to each other how much time their children spend on smartphones and tablets, and just over a quarter of parents (28 per cent) wished their child spent less time on the devices.

• 59 per cent of parents said they would feel reassured to know that many other parents and carers understate the amount of time their children spend on smartphones
• 62 per cent of parents believe they manage their child’s screentime well
• 2 in 3 parents set a time limit for children on smartphones/tablets
• The average time spent on screens is nearly one hour (71 minutes) per day for 3 to 5-year-olds, with children’s screentime increasing with age
• Parents are most likely to let their children use smartphones/tablets when travelling on long trips (59 per cent), when feeling tired (44 per cent), at a restaurant (35 per cent) or in a waiting room (31 per cent)