{"id":196,"date":"2026-08-31T18:56:57","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T01:56:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru318\/?p=196"},"modified":"2026-08-31T19:26:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T02:26:10","slug":"new-technology-same-teaching","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/malat-webspace.royalroads.ca\/rru318\/new-technology-same-teaching\/","title":{"rendered":"New Technology, Same Teaching?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

By Christiane Martine<\/em>z<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Image created by ChatGPT (using the blog post as prompt)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I confess I had not thought much about the history of educational technology, although I did experience many of the ‘situations’ described by Weller (2020). It was interesting to see how quickly technology was sometimes adopted without the same attention being given to how teaching itself needed to change. I honestly thought that was only happening where I worked, but that probably other institutions around the world were doing a much better job (I was teaching in Brazil). Weller’s (2020) description of concerns (in the late 1990s) about the rush to implement e-learning with limited consideration of its pedagogical implications helped me see this was not unique to my own workplace at the time.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The possibilities offered by technology do not automatically lead to changes in pedagogy. The web gave learners opportunities to communicate, collaborate, and take a more active role in their learning, which aligned well with constructivist approaches (Weller, 2020). However, introducing technology does not mean that teaching practices will change. Cuban et al. (2001) found that even when teachers had access to computers, their use often maintained existing teaching practices instead of transforming them. This made me reflect on my own teaching practice, which began in 1994. At the time, I was an instructor at an institution that had recently invested heavily in what it described as a \u201cstate-of-the-art\u201d computer lab. The lab was promoted as \u201cthe future of learning and teaching,\u201d yet in practice, it functioned mainly as an extension of the traditional classroom. Teaching approaches remained much the same, with computers used primarily as a replacement for the typewriter. Looking back, the technology itself was new, but the pedagogy had not changed with it. As Weller (2020) states, a new platform or tool can easily become another way of delivering the same content.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I were to write a similar book, I would also begin a history of modern educational technology in 1994, although I would acknowledge that its history goes back much further. Reiser (2001) traces the use of instructional media in education back to the early 1900s. Weller (2020), however, identifies 1994 as an important shift from analog technologies toward digital and networked approaches. The web was also beginning to enter mainstream awareness at this time. For that reason, 1994 makes sense to me as a starting point for the digital era of educational technology, even though it is clearly part of a much longer history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

AI Disclaimer: ChatGPT was used to create the picture above, and to search for references. The suggestions were read thoroughly and confirmed as relevant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

References<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Cuban, L., Kirkpatrick, H., & Peck, C. (2001). High Access and Low Use of Technologies in High School Classrooms: Explaining an Apparent Paradox. American Educational Research Journal<\/em>, 38<\/em>(4), 813\u2013834. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3102\/00028312038004813<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reiser, R. A. (2001). A history of instructional design and technology: Part I: A history of instructional media. Educational Technology Research and Development<\/em>, 49<\/em>(1), 53\u201364. https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1007\/BF02504506<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Weller, M. (2020). 25 Years of Ed Tech<\/em>. Athabasca University Press.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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