21st Century Education

As part of this weeks module, we were asked to listen to an ABC podcast as well as a YouTube video of a keynote address from Punya Mishra, both discussing the place of technology in 21st century education. 

One of the key points that I took away from these recordings was eloquently summarised by the host of the ABC podcast, Antony Funnel, who said that "technology doesn't educate people, people educate people" (Davies, 2012). A lot of the focus of the importance of technology seems to be placed on the physical gadgets, not just in schooling systems but in society at large.  We want the newest, shiniest and most impressive devices from the big names like Apple and Samsung. I am guilty myself of having a hankering for the latest release of the iPhone and even in my last blog post expressed an interest in those devices at the forefront of technology, like drones and 3D printing. Punya Mishra pointed out in his address, however, that technology is a tool that can be used in many different ways and that we need to focus on innovating the way technology is used and applied to education, rather than focusing on the devices themselves. Mishra explained that the latter is viewing technology from a "technocentric" frame, which is far too limiting. He argues that no technologies are actually educational technologies, that teachers repurpose and redefine technology for educational needs. In this way, technology will never replace teachers as it requires creative intervention and customisation in order to maximise its benefits. Rather than the focus being on technology integration in teaching, we should begin to look at technology innovation in teaching. 

In the podcast, Funnel explained that technology needs to be viewed with scepticism, that technology shouldn't be taken at face value and we need to view it with a certain level of criticism. Similarly, Mishra stated that we need to humble when it comes to the latest progresses in technology, that change just won't happen straight away. This way of thinking; that with the new technology, changes to learning and progress will follow, is aligned with a technocentric framework.  One of the ABC podcast guests, Greg Whitby, claimed that "If you focus on the technology, you ignore the central problem and the central issue" (Davies, 2012). I agree with the statement, in that technology alone doesn't have the power to revolutionise the way in which information is communicated to students. The true influence of technology in education will come through the intervention of teachers, who creatively utilise technology to engage students to learn and view content in new and exciting ways. 

Both Funnel and Mishra seem to agree that there needs to be a balance between technology and pedagogy, that the two complement each other. Furthermore, both Mishra and Phillip Callil, President at the Victorian IT Teachers' Association, point out the need to train educators with skills necessary to apply these technologies to student learning. Mishra states that this cannot be achieved in isolation however and that stand-alone courses on technology skills are not sufficient. Technology and pedagogy overlap and so technology needs to be taught integrated with the context of particular content areas. 

References

Davies, A. (Producer). (2012, August 19). 21st Century Education ABC [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from http://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/futuretense/21st-century-education/4197700#transcript

21st Century Learning International [21CLI]. (2012, March 22). Punya Mishra - Keynote Speaker @ 21st Century Learning Conference - Hong Kong 2012. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9bwXYa91fvQ&list=WL&index=5