For our new course, we are taking a look at the history of educational technology (ed tech), specifically the influence of the internet on higher education. Weller’s 25 Years of Ed Tech (2020) has provided some insights into the beginnings of technology in education.
One aspect I found particularly surprising was the relatively keen interest from higher education in the early years of the internet. As a university student myself (1999-2003 was my first degree), my institution was somewhat lagging regarding implementing technology and/or differing structure. Others too, have noted higher educational institutions slow movement to adapt and change (Lewington, 2019). So when Weller described Open Universities and their adoption of early internet technologies like Bulletin Board Systems (BBS) such as CoSy in the mid 1990s, it made me question my assumption that Universities lacked the initiative to embrace new technologies or ideas (Weller, 2020). That being said, in his introduction Weller (2020) is quite clear that he is being subjective and speaking mainly from his experiences in the UK, meaning that geography can play a huge role in institutional structures and willingness to change. This is a concept that I would like to explore further.
Another aspect of Weller’s book that I found interesting was his chapter regarding learning theory and ed tech, specifically constructivism. He devoted a lengthy chapter to the ‘hype’ of constructivism on the implementation of technology in education. Weller (2020) illustrated educators’ keen interest in constructivism and online learning, as this learning theory centered around experiential learning that was student centered. He quotes King’s catchy phrase to elaborate on the shift in pedagogy: “…the professor, instead of being the ‘sage on the stage’, functions as a ‘guide on the side,’” (King, 1993, as cited in Weller, 2020, p.29). Weller goes on to elaborate on specific pedagogies that fit under the constructivist learning theory. It is clear from Weller’s (2020) description and evidence that constructivist learning theory played a significant role in online learning, but were there any other theories that were being discussed? Weller makes a comment that constructivism was the overwhelmingly popular choice for e-learning, but did that mean that other pedagogies were overlooked because of the immense interest in constructivism (2020)? Also, as web-based learning progressed, were other pedagogies and theories being explored? I have not yet read the entirety of Weller’s book, so perhaps he addresses this more towards the end.
So far, I am learning the importance of looking back in order to move forward.
References
Weller, M. (2020). 25 Years of Ed Tech. Athabasca University Press. https://doi.org/10.15215/aupress/9781771993050.01
Lewington, J. (2019, April 24). Why are Canadian universities so slow to adopt digital learning? Maclean’s. https://www.macleans.ca/education/why-are-canadian-universities-so-slow-to-adopt-digital-learning/
Thank you for sharing Terry! I am interested to know your thoughts on the theories of “sage on the stage” or “guide on the side” as a high school teacher. Have you found students learn better one way or the other? Has this shifted during the pandemic and moving to online learning? I have found that I lean towards more of the “guide on the side” for in-person learning, but I find it hard to do this in an online environment.
Hi Tim,
Thanks for the comment! As a high school teacher, I find that it depends on the student whether or not they prefer a ‘guide’ or direct support. Mostly, students prefer the autonomy of trying and finding on their own; however, when it comes to an area they find difficult, many prefer a more direct support approach initially. I agree with your comment about the difficulty of being a facilitator in an online environment; it is pretty challenging!