Metaphors of Ed Tech
Martin Weller
Abstract
Education itself is couched deeply in terms of metaphors. Depending on which model a software developer adheres to will influence the type of educational technology developed or how it is deployed in an institution. If you see learning as product delivery, then the sort of technology favoured will be focused on organizing and managing content that can be delivered to learners. If, however, the dominant metaphor is one of process, then the technology will support different stages in a learning process. Similarly, Botha (2009) proposes nine uses of metaphor in education, including how we shape educational policy (e.g., student as consumer), how we view the learning process (e.g., learner as sponge), how we frame teachers (e.g., teacher as guide), and how we talk about education in society. Metaphors, then, are key to how we think about, implement, practise, and evaluate education and thus the role that we see for technology within it. Sfard (1998) suggests a distinction between two basic learning metaphors-acquisition and participation. Acquisition is characterized by knowledge and concepts constructed by the learner, with the teacher involved in activities such as delivering content or facilitating learning. Participation involves ideas of apprenticeship and communities of practice in which learning is "not considered separately from the context within which it takes place" (p. 6). Sfard contends that we need both metaphors to develop meaningful learning, and the idea that metaphors need not be exclusive, or that one is superior to another, is important to keep in mind. This work on metaphors highlights the motivation for this book and why the consideration of metaphors in ed tech is worthy of attention. Since I will focus on metaphors of educational technology, it is worth defining what the term "educational technology" refers to in this respect. It has a long history and can include any technology used in an educational context, from chalk and blackboard to virtual reality.