Fear of the new

By Alastair Creelman. Why does education and especially the higher levels have such a suspicious attitude towards technology? You would expect universities to be at the forefront of pedagogical innovation but ironically it would seem to be reluctant to try new methods, despite all the MOOC hysteria of recent months. If you want to see innovative use of educational technology you probably need to look at elementary and nursery schools where tablets are especially used to encourage and facilitate reading, writing and counting skills through games and stimulating apps.
This issue is raised by Lord David Puttnam, chancellor of the Open University, who claims in an article in the Daily Telegraph, Fear of technology may hold back change in education, says Lord Puttnam, that higher education is the most conservative educational sector when it comes to adopting technology. He fears that change is being held back by fear. More...