Rethinking the Integration of Technology

This post is related to a previous post entitled "adapt or die" and hopefully it will become clear why I say so.

I often hear it being stated that elearning is a teaching approach meant to supplement face to face teaching. While in the early days of elearning it may have been a suitable tactic so as not to scare off would-be-practitioners the same approach today appear to be impeding the notion of integrating technology. To me the idea of a supplement conjurs the thinking that it is an add-on, something that I can use to enhance what is already there. But what if I think that my teaching don't need any enhancement? My issue is not with the pace at which academics are adopting elearning but whether those who have adopted the approach really promote the "integration of technology".

Class of the Future?

More Traditional Class?

When I think of integrated technology I think of the cellphones. We can hardly imagine our lives without them yet just a few years ago they were non-existent. Now, do we feel the same what about using technology in our teaching? Do our learners feel this way about the use of technology?

I was once told that, we often teach in the same way in which we were taught, which makes me wonder whether we should not be making more use of technology in our face to face teaching in order to encourage its use in learning. This would perhaps make technology (www, applications, tools, cameras MP3 Player etc) more as a central part of teaching and learning rather than a supplement to it. Perhaps the next generation of academics would then be more inclined to embark on this road of teaching as well because it has been modeled to us, making the links between subject content and technology use more explicit. Wouldn't such practices perhaps promote to integration of technology?