e-learning+in+Practice+-+Reality

=What is appropriate e-learning practice – ICT Integration or a new pedagogy of teaching and learning? =

Kozma (2003 as cited by Finger, et al., 2007) identified that the innovative ICT practices around the world have many qualities in common. These included using ICT to transform the way that education is delivered, opening the way to a new pedagogy of teaching and learning and blending existing practice with ICT tools to enhance learning and the curriculum. Similarly, these common threads are evident in Australian and New Zealand e-learning practices.

Herein lies the beginning of the conflict what is appropriate (or even best) practice for e-learning - ICT integration or ICT as changing pedagogy. Spender (2007) talks about the role of ICT as tool for use in current practice when she suggests that the challenge for educators is to ensure that quality teaching and learning continues with access to the digital tools around us. Dorothy Burt, (Ministry of Education, 2007) an e-learning leader in New Zealand, stresses the importance of helping teachers understand that the practices that have made them good teachers in the past are the exact same ones that will make them good teachers in the 21st century. Nichols (2008) also highlights that the core beliefs do not change when e-learning is applied and we must be careful to ensure that practice is based on learning theories. However, as you progress through the literature you begin to notice the repetitive use of the term, quality teaching and learning. So it stands to reason, that effective ICT integration or an effective pedagogy for ICT, is in essence, an effective pedagogy for learning which ICT tools are used to support. Rather than replace the theories of education, Nichols (2008) believes that e-learning provides the opportunities for applying established educational and interpersonal theories.

Girod and Cavanaugh (2001 as cited in Ward & Parr, 2008) have found that in New Zealand this is often how ICT is used – to strengthen current practice rather than promote change. The Ministry of Education in New Zealand produced a DVD, '21st Century Learner: A glimpse of the Future' (2007), which emphasises the importance of integrating ICT into current effective practice. [|Click here to view the Overview.] 'The ICT in School Report: 2009’ (Johnson, et al., 2009) is focused on the degree to which ICT is being integrated into schools, emphasising the focus on ICT integration in New Zealand schools.

Similarly, Worrell (Finger, et al., 2007) believes that most schools in Australia are still operating within the traditional paradigm, using traditional pedagogies. In agreement, Holkner, et al. (2008) found that after nearly 50 years of computers in education in Australia there is still confusion about the use of technology in classrooms and widespread reluctance to move beyond tokenistic use. Holkner, et al. (2008) expands by saying that there is no shared pedagogical vision for how technology should be used in classrooms and as such teachers are simply attempting integrate ICT within their current teaching practice.

Alternatively, as discussed in the ‘Big Ideas’ section there are a number of educationalists such as Treadwell (2008), Gilbert (2005), Mishra (2009 as cited in Wright, 2010) and Whitby (2007) who all refer to the need for new paradigm shift in education which will transform learning for the Knowledge Age. Mishra (2009 as cited in Wright, 2010) goes as far as to say that there is little value in using ICT unless you are prepared to change pedagogy.   Little evidence of this is available for Australian and New Zealand schools which is inline with the international findings of Haddad and Draxler (2002 as cited by Finger, et al., 2007) who noted that in most countries ICT as a changing pedagogy and to support anytime, anywhere learning is a long way from being fulfilled. Indeed, in New Zealand, Campbell (2001) believes the major task confronting schools is how to utilise the e-environment as more than an add-on to historic teaching practices. Worrell (Finger, et al., 2007) agrees that the same issue is evident in Australia.

Having said that, it is worth nothing that there are some ‘new’ teaching and learning frameworks available which aim to facilitate 21st century learning and change the way the pedagogy of teachers. These frameworks include P21 Learning Framework (Trilling & Fadel, 2009), TPCK (Mishra & Koehler, 2006), Inquiry Learning ( of which there are a number of models), and Laurilland’s The Conversational Framework (2002 as cited in Mark Nicholas, 2009). It is up to individual teachers to locate and make sense of these frameworks and implement them in their classrooms if meet the needs of their students.

Thus far we have discovered that acceptable practice is influenced by the ‘big ideas’ about e-learning, that these ideas and their influences can be different for different teachers but primarily in Australia and New Zealand ICT integration is the most common method of e-learning.

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 * = Blue Hat Question

Thinking about Thinking || || Watch the video ‘20th Century & 21st Century Teachers’, what school of thought about ICT, does the 21st Century Teacher belong to - transforming the way that e-learning is delivered or integration of ICT into existing practice?

What are the key indicators that support your opinion? ||


 * = <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Yellow Hat <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Question

<span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Benefits || || <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Revisiting what you know about the ‘big picture’ behind pushing the e-learning agenda, which of these practices (transforming the way that e-learning is delivered or integration of ICT into existing practice) has the potential for long term gain? <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%;">Justify your response. || <span style="display: block; font-family: Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 110%; line-height: 0px; overflow: hidden;">

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