Without a doubt contemporary education needs technology and we live in a connected world of learning networks. It is also important because it is the lens through which we view teaching and learning in a constructivist learning environment. This technology-supported learning environment certainly creates a context where learning is a personal, as well as a social activity but the dependence on technology in the learning process has significant consequences on how learning takes place personally and socially. This is obvious for me in my current courses at HCT which are all delivered through BB9 and OneNote. My experience as a teacher over the past thirty years has allowed me to experience fundamental changes in the way we perceive teaching and learning. We can all celebrate the days of talk and chalks are gone but the drive towards educational technology is really out of our hands. I do wonder about the shift I have seen towards relying on it too much..... There is also the debate and questioning about the quality of deep learning and metacognition that is taking place for learners within this computer-mediated collaborative learning context. Is there enough opportunity for those higher order thinking skills and the reflection that is needed? Are we helping to create environments where our learners are too dependent on technology, group consensus and less on themselves?
John Page makes reference to ten very logical and obvious reasons why it is important in the contemporary educational context. I would not advocate learning as an outside-guided model but consider learning as self-guided to be a central target to aim for with our students. But the challenge, I believe, is to understand and evaluate the worth of different perspectives and methods to guide the design of effective instruction for learners. The constructivist principles of education seems to assume a lot, where learners are expected to function as self-motivated, self-directed, interactive, collaborative participants in their learning experiences. We know this is not always possible and there are so many variables at play in any learning situation. Therefore I would suggest that teachers today face two challenges. One challenge comes from the changing perceptions of what learning is all about and the second challenge comes from the perceived new learning opportunities that technology now presents.
Hi Jules,
ReplyDeleteI think your point about the need to take our students with us as our perceptions of learning change is absolutely vital I think we have to be careful to ensure that we do not become so wrapped up in the possibilities that new and networked technologies offer that we lose sight of student learning and experience. The assumption of self-directed, collaborative participants does seem a little hopeful considering some of our students. This is why an understanding of the difficulty of the process of educational change may be informative. It is not always a straightforward process of just changing and hoping everyone else keeps us. Education in its broadest sense concerns changing how people view and interact with the world and is a social process. Creating a sense that our students are involved in this change, that we are not running ahead of them and that their learning is still at the centre of the educational process is necessary.
Thanks for the thoughtful post Julie. The shift to educational technology brings with it a lot of potential changes and raises a number of sometimes uncomfortable questions. For example, when we are children we learn a lot of htings becuase we want to reap the rewards that learning the skill gives us (why do kids keep trying to ride a bike even after they fall off?) But within a formal educational setting - why are students trying to learn? Too often, the answer is "to pass the course." And I am not just talking about our students. Where this is the case I suppose educational technology offers the opportunity to make learning simpler, more relevant to the students everyday lives or more fun. But it doesn't make the material more interesting necessarily - for the disinterested student. For example a student who has a facebook account but who doesnt like math isnt necessarily going to sign up for a facebook page about math! In the same way that I dont watch ballet on youtube - but I do watch football clips
ReplyDeleteSo I suppose the question raised for me by your post is this: To what extent should we prioritise the use of ed tech tools to try to engage and inform the disinterested student compared to using it to provide enhanced opportunities for deeper learning for those students who are interested and engaged? Are they in fact the same thing? My gut feeling says not. I look forward to working with you on this module
regards Andrew