Technology-Enabled Learning: Policy, Pedagogy and Practice

Abstract

This book comes at an unprecedented moment in history, when the COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted every sphere of activity. The impact on the education sector left millions of students out of school due to institutional closures. Governments, institutions, students and teachers had to make an almost overnight transition to distance and online learning. But crisis generates creativity, and many Commonwealth countries found appropriate solutions to ensure that students continued to learn. A range of technologies was used — printed text, radio, television, interactive radio instruction, community radio, multimedia, and online learning — based on the requirements of different constituencies. However, the emphasis on online learning in contexts where electricity, computers and connectivity were not readily available led to protests from both students and teachers. In addition to the lack of resources, it was clear that effective online learning required adequate planning, quality content and teacher capacity. Most campus institutions were completely unprepared. On the other hand, the distance education system was well equipped to keep the doors of learning open. Many open universities and open schools continued to teach while their campus counterparts were forced to close. Several of the latter quickly converted their courses for online delivery. As an intergovernmental organisation established to promote distance and technology-enabled learning (TEL), the Commonwealth of Learning (COL) responded quickly by curating teaching and learning resources, releasing guidelines on distance education, and launching a platform to create a network of organisations to collaborate and share expertise and resources. Some of the lessons learnt in the process are: • with adequate ICT infrastructure, countries can develop a resilient education system; • distance education, especially blended learning, can be the way forward for many educational institutions; • synchronous technologies (such as video conferencing) are increasingly available but are not necessarily the only way to teach online; • teacher readiness and capacity building are necessary for effective teaching and learning; and • open educational resources (OER) need to be harnessed to provide quality content quickly. vTechnology-Enabled Learning: Policy, Pedagogy and Practice Interestingly, these ideas resonate in the chapters of this book, Technology-Enabled Learning: Policy, Pedagogy and Practice. The editors of the book commissioned 15 chapters (excluding the prologue and epilogue) on COL’s concrete interventions in TEL. Experts at COL partner institutions in ten Commonwealth countries have documented the research and best practices enabled through COL support. The book showcases some of the most successful examples of developing policy, improving pedagogy and supporting institutional practice. This led the editors to cover the wider issues around ICT in education, and the implementation of TEL and OER policies and practices. One key recommendation that emerges is to mainstream TEL to develop resilient education systems that can cope with sudden disasters. I take this opportunity to thank the contributors and the editors for bringing out this timely publication. Special thanks to the peer reviewers and COL colleagues, who have contributed directly or indirectly to enriching this publication. I am sure it will inspire many educational institutions in the Commonwealth and beyond to adopt TEL policy, pedagogy and practice for achieving equitable quality education and lifelong learning for all. I invite you to critically analyse the case studies drawn from different contexts, and to remix and adapt these practices to your own needs. Professor Asha Kanwar President & Chief Executive Officer Commonwealth of Learning