Looking beyond learning

Notes towards the critical study of educational technology

Bibliographic Data

ID23329409
AuthorsNeil Selwyn (0000-0001-9489-2692, University of London, corresponding author)
Year2010
Volume26
Issue1
Pages65-73
Publication date2010-02-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Computer Assisted Learning (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0266-4909 • E-ISSN: 1365-2729
PublisherWiley (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1111/j.1365-2729.2009.00338.x
OpenAlexW1544541994
LanguageEN
Citations received91
References cited18

This paper makes a case for academic research and writing that looks beyond the learning potential of technology and, instead, seeks to develop social scientific accounts of the often compromised and constrained realities of education technology use ‘on the ground’. The paper discusses how this ‘critical’ approach differs from the ways that educational technology scholarship has tended to be pursued to date. These differences include viewing technology as being socially constructed and negotiated rather than imbued with pre‐determined characteristics; developing objective and realistic accounts of technology use in situ ; and producing ‘context rich’ analyses of the social conflicts and politics that underpin the use of technology in educational settings. The paper concludes by encouraging academic researchers and writers to show greater interest in the issues of democracy and social justice that surround educational technology.

Context (archaeology) · Critical theory · Democracy · Educational research · Educational technology · Engineering ethics · Pedagogy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Scholarship · Social justice · Social science · Sociology · Technology education · Engineering · Global Education and Multiculturalism · Social Media and Politics · Teacher Education and Leadership Studies