eLearning and Digital Cultures MOOC
So this course has begun by asking us to examine utopia and dystopia with regard to the concepts around technology in education. I'm reminded of two things that I haven't thought about in a long time. The first is my experiences as a linguistic anthropology student in my undergrad days. The second was this guy:
http://www.startrek.com/database_article/data
For those of you not familiar, this is Mr. Data from the American television show, Star Trek the Next Generation. Data is a character who is an Android; modeled after a human and built (or born) to be as human as possible. In fact, he displays all of the aspects of human behaviour and many of human thinking. Data can create, can reason, can develop and share his opinion, can make friends and have emotion-based relationships. Data represents a utopian view of human technological advances. He is the 'better' human because he doesn't age, he is symmetrical and evenly proportioned (which passes consistently for attractive). He is also kind, artistic (in his own way) and thoughtful toward the people about whom he cares. The thing is though, from Mr. Data's perspective, his personal internal existence is an eternal dystopia.
Mr Data is trapped in an endless loop of wanting to really be human. He approaches human in so many ways and demonstrates so much humanity you might wonder how close he really needs to be to truly be human. But he isn't; and this is the dissatisfier. He can't tell jokes. He can't feel extremes or emotions. From our perspective, the technology is perfect; from inside the sentient being, it is otherwise.
Which brings me to the second thing I thought of: the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis and Occam's razor. According to the Sapir-Worf hypothesis, people who speak a language together share a similar worldview because their ideas and the expression of those ideas is governed, limited, and moulded by the language they use. Following this, the translation of ideas from one language to another is relative to the shared worldview of the different language speakers. Essentially, people's language cloaks the information and ideas in relative terms.
What does this mean for Mr. Data, technology and education?
Educational technology can be seen as the savior of education by providing ideas and opportunities for many more people to share ideas and multiples of opinions and new creations. But it can also be seen as a limiter by only showing people what someone has deemed appropriate, linked, and 'close' to the work environment or the 'real' world. For the creators of this learning, like the people that Mr. Data works and lives with, it is good enough. Their perception of learning from within their experience as experts, learning designers, subject matter experts, etc. the training delivery, performance support and activities are going to bring about change to benefit both learner and environment. From within the learning experience though, the pre-determination of what is being taught in which format can limit and feel like something is missing, something is almost like the real work world... but not quite the same. Technology can limit how a person thinks about what they are learning.
We can't just believe that technology (from immersive simulations to paper support tools) is going to solve a learning problem. We also can't believe that the introduction of new technology or changes in how learners access learning opportunities is going to disrupt or limit a learner's opportunity. The focus really has to be on the learner; on Mr. Data. Helping the learner to construct a new reality and perhaps shift their mindset to apply information and create new meaning for themselves.
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