A Charles Sturt University (CSU) academic and a colleague from a major computer company have published a new book that provides a strategic blueprint for using commonly available technology to drive measurable and sustainable change in education.

 

The book, The Learning Edge: What technology can do to educate all children, is co-authored by Associate Professor Alan Bain, a lecturer at the CSU School of Teacher Education in Bathurst and Sub-Dean, Curriculum and Faculty Development, in the Faculty of Education, and Mr Mark E Weston, a global education strategist at Dell Inc. in Atlanta, Georgia, USA.

 

Professor Bain said their investigation and analysis started by asking, why is the performance of students and teachers so unaffected by technology, despite billions of dollars, thousands of studies, and immeasurable effort by educators at all levels?

 

“More to the point, we asked what should be done to extract genuine benefit from the information and communication technology (ICT) revolution,” Professor Bain said.

 

“As technology and education experts, we provide research-based evidence for how the widespread application of ICT can provide powerful learning opportunities that lead to lasting gains and achievement.

 

“We show how, by giving all educational stakeholders powerful problem-solving tools and solutions, the integrated use of technology at all levels of the educational system can greatly expand  collaborative learning opportunities.

 

“The approaches we present in The Learning Edge are grounded in over 20 years of experience working with classroom teachers, school leaders, association members, and policymakers.

 

“We include vignettes of classrooms and schools that are successfully using technology across the curriculum, and provide a solutions-oriented presentation, including practical examples of alternative courses of action at all levels of the education system. Key ideas are summarised in a section at the end of each chapter.”