Selwyn, N. (2011). Education and technology: key issues and debates. London: Continuum.

I recommend reading Education and technology: ‘the’ comprehensive overview that questions how technology-use affects education.

Education is formal learning provided by an institution, usually structured, assessed and credentialized (Selwyn, 2012). Formal learning is managed by educational institutes (Rogers, 2003); whereas, informal learning is controlled by learners outside intuitions without external criteria (Livingstone, 2000). Learning is a “means to acquire a new skill or insight” (Illich 1973) and is frequently viewed as a product or process. Selywn briefly explains Behaviourist theories as passive and externally-shaped process; Constructivist theories as exploration and meaning-making; Sociocultural theories as situated within cultural contexts; Bloom’s (1956) psychomotor, affective and cognitive domains;  Situated learning as peers co- constructing knowledge; and Sfard’s (1998) learning through participation. Education is not isolated, but intertwined with families, income, gender, race, households, workplaces,  institutes, communities, cultures, commercial markets, national states and global economies.

Technology in education includes artifacts and devices, activities and practices, and social contexts (Lievrouw & Livingstone, 2002).  Previously, technology was used to seek and access information; however, currently technology enables social interaction, any time any place, and interlinks to other technologies. Information is networked and remains unfinished in a constant state of development by multiple users.

Technology can change learning processes: making learning accessible, affordable, flexible, and active (McLoughlin & Lee, 2008); enabling self-management of learning; encouraging reflective and reflexive practice (Beck-Gernsheim, 1996), promoting critical thinking (Bugeja, 2006), and providing interaction for learning communities. Online communities of practice enable learners to share knowledge in social, informal ways. Learning can now be discovered rather than delivered and negotiated rather than prescribed. We are moving towards user-driven education  (Edson, 2007), where learners seek own learning instead of institutes proving education (Collis & Gommer, 2001).  Learning-technologies may finally challenge persistent educational structures, identified by Illich in 1971, that encourage reliance on educational institutes, discourage self-management of learning, and reinforce societies’ inequalities. Here’s to the future of learning-technologies that may facilitate a change in learning cultures.