Are you For or Against Technology in Learning?

Technology has become typical in our schools, work, and home. Adult learners have come to expect PowerPoint slides during training. The following blog is a summary of an excellent article from Training Magazine November 2003.

The author starts with an intriguing comment "technology can be our greatest challenge, most practical solution, or biggest headache." We have come to learn that the learning theories we have learned can and have utilized various technologies to implement their lessons. Technology has become the replica of "Clap On, Clap Off" for turning on and off the lights of learning.

According to Stephan Downes, a senior research office with the National Research Council of Canada, technology has created a multitude of new problems that we are glad to have. For instance, we moved from concerns regarding teaching unskilled labor to which technology method would best be suited for maximum ROI. Clearly, technology has enabled the students with various outlets for knowledge. On the other side of the spectrum, you have cynics who decree that the use of technology lacks the elements of Vygotsky's social learning. Comments such as the internet do not allow the student time to reflect and construct deep knowledge (p.54).

Vygotsky's learning theory was built on the concept that the learner requires an animated teacher and the existence of a social network to build deep knowledge. Technology has enabled the learner to respond and adapt to their culture in methods that were not fathomable at earlier times. Whereby knowledge may have been outdated by the time, the learner has seen it. Now the knowledge is continuously evolving and the learner is up to speed on any topic that they find of interest.

In conclusion, Technology is a magnificent tool and is adaptable to any learning theory you wish to utilize (Behaviorist, Cognitivist, or Constructivist). The key message for instructors and learner is Technology is most effective when you are its master. Caution to those of us who jump from one new technology method to another in the never-ending search of utopia. The base of the learning pyramid lies in our learning theories and technology is just a tool in our gearbox.
Reference: Barbian, J. (2003).High-tech times.TRAINING.52-55.