The Government of the Northwest Territories (GNWT) has launched a new childhood development strategy centered around iPads.
The GNWT officially unveiled its iPad Mini Initiative in Yellowknife Tuesday afternoon.
Its launch follows months of comprehensive research, a pilot phase and content review. Government officials also met with elders, community leaders and early childhood consultants.
According to the GNWT, both research and feedback from the public identified a need to provide new parents with credible information to guide them through the early stages of their child’s life.
“We knew this initiative would be a helpful and accessible tool in the hands of new parents and caregivers,” said territorial education minister Alfred Moses in a statement issued Tuesday.
Read: NWT’s iPads for parents: what, exactly, is on each tablet?
To date, Moses says 300 iPads have been provided to parents across the NWT. Each of them contains valuable parenting information and tips on how to raise children.
However, education officials say the devices are designed to be tools for parents and not toys for children, adding that young children learn best by interacting with people and not screens.
The territorial government is delivering the program with the support of Chevron Canada, which has provided funding for a project manager and the first 500 iPads distributed across the NWT.
New parents with a child between the ages of zero and six months are eligible to receive an iPad as part of the program.
To find out how you can apply, click here (pdf).
