An early childhood researcher based at The Kids Research Institute Australia’s Adelaide office has been honoured at South Australia’s Science Excellence and Innovation Awards for her work revealing the link between screen time exposure and toddlers’ language development.
Dr Mary Brushe won the PhD Research Excellence Category for publications, collaboration and leadership throughout her PhD, including a paper which gained global attention in March this year when it revealed that screen time was replacing vital language opportunities for Australian toddlers.
The first-of-its kind study, undertaken at The Kids as part of Dr Brushe’s PhD with the University of Adelaide, used Fitbit-like devices to measure the amount of electronic noise and parent-child talk surrounding children aged 1-3 years. Dr Brushe found that for every minute of screen time they were exposed to at home, toddlers heard fewer adult words, made fewer vocalisations, and engaged in fewer back-and-forth conversations with their parents.
Other research published by Dr Brushe throughout her PhD investigated how many words Australian children hear in their first year of life and identified the ‘education word gap’ that emerges by 18 months of age.
Her work informed the National Early Language and Literacy Strategy, published in 2021, and was used in a submission to the South Australian Royal Commission into Early Childhood Education and Care in 2023, highlighting the socioeconomic disparities in early language exposure among Australian children.
Dr Brushe this year became President of the Public Health Association of Australia’s South Australian branch and is a member of the 0-3 Early Years Taskforce, a group of early childhood experts and stakeholders in SA, led by Raising Literacy Australia, that has informed a public health campaign – Words Grow Minds – to support parent-child interactions during the early years.
The campaign was officially launched by the SA Government in early 2024, with Dr Brushe speaking at a press conference alongside the Premier of South Australia, Minister for Education and the CEO of Raising Literacy.
Executive Director of The Kids Research Institute Australia, Professor Jonathan Carapetis, congratulated Dr Brushe on her win and said the recognition was a testament to the high quality and broad impact of her research.
“Dr Brushe’s PhD studies not only uncovered important evidence around language development in young children but her findings, coupled with her advocacy, are helping to inform and shape policy that will make a difference to children’s long-term outcomes,” Professor Carapetis said.
Run by the South Australian Department of State Development, the Science Excellence and Innovation Awards are the State’s premier science showcase event, highlighting the critical importance of science, research and innovation to the development of industry and society as a whole.