IMPACT OF MULTIMEDIA APPLICATIONS IN EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION
The study investigated the impact of multimedia applications in early childhood education: A study of selected nursery schools in Uyo metropolis. Four research questions guided the study. The researcher adopted the mixed-method approach to provide a robust framework for both theoretical exploration and practical application in educational settings. The population of the study consisted of all the 123 teachers, children, parents, school administrators and policymakers, educational technologists and multimedia content developers as well as early childhood education researchers/experts in three selected nursery schools in Uyo metropolis. The findings on the schools in Uyo metropolis revealed that multimedia applications have been found to significantly augment engagement levels amongst early learners. The auditory and visual cues provided by these applications support the development of listening skills, compression and vocabulary expansion. Educational applications designed for group activities or that encourage sharing and taking turns can foster teamwork and communication skills from an early age and early exposure to multimedia applications introduces young learners to basic digital skills. The following recommendations among others were made. Multimedia applications (softwares) should be provided to these selected nursery schools in Uyo metropolis as it would enhance child learning efficiency if adopted and properly utilized. Quantitative results show enhanced language and numeracy skills compared to traditional teaching methods. Qualitatively, teachers reported increased enthusiasm and participation among students, while parents observed more pronounced interest in learning activities at home. The purposive random sampling method was used for sample selection and questionnaire schedule was used for data collection. The results revealed that multimedia applications increased dependency in early childhood education. The study also examined challenges encountered in implementing multimedia resources, including technological barriers and the need for teacher training. Comparative analysis between schools employing media tools and those relying solely on traditional methods provides a broader perspective on the efficacy of multimedia in early child education. Theoretical framework for this study were the Cognitive Load Theory and the Social Learning Theory.