Education Technology, E-Learning, and the Classroom Experience (original) (raw)

I come to this topic as an e-learning teacher who has led and continues to lead professional development in the area of educational technology (hereafter, Ed Tech), defined here as "the study and ethical practice of facilitating learning and improving performance by creating, using, and managing appropriate technological processes and resources" (Januszewski & Molenda, 2007, p. 1). Technology, particularly the Internet, is an area in which I have long had an interest, and this interest is something that I brought to my professional career. However, in recent years, I have begun to question many of the assumptions surrounding the application of the Internet, and specifically e-learning, as the most direct application of Internet-based Ed Tech to education. Indeed, throughout my professional career, I have noticed that there is an assumption that the application of technology in the classroom results in greater engagement of students, more learning, and better teaching, whereas actual practice has shown me that this is not always the case. Methodology: Philosophical Inquiry In this thesis, I use a philosophical inquiry approach to show that the increased use of Internet-based Ed Tech has the potential to do more harm than good. I have chosen this approach because, in the words of Biesta and Stengel (2016), "a philosophical standpoint challenges, qualifies, deepens, and even transforms our understanding of a phenomenon" (p. 7). As mentioned, the phenomenon in this case is the rapid adoption and incorporation of Internet-based Ed Tech into schools in Ontario. The philosophical inquiry method allows for a deeper analysis of the documents and the general assumptions surrounding the use of the Internet in schools.