Doug’s Ed.D. blog

An interesting post by Chris Sessums about how ICT changes the ‘locus of control’ in educational institutions: http://elgg.net/csessums/weblog/129615.html

Is the locus of control of learning different given ICTs and social software and what should educators do?

In formal educational settings there is an unresolved tension between the individual and the institution. Institutions are responsible for accrediting learners and learning. Courses and programs are designed to meet standards set forth by varying accreditation agencies which set policies and in many cases determine what is to be taught, how “mastery” is defined, and whether or not an institution is properly qualified to deliver the goods, so to speak. Assessment and not students or institutions thus signify the locus of control.”

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The following article may be useful for looking at why schools don’t undergo fundamental changes despite changes in society:� http://www.papert.org/articles/school_reform.html

“The common theme of Tinkering Towards Utopia and the two reviews of The Children’s Machine is the failure of educational reform to change School.(1) O’Shea and Koschmann each tell aspects of a story in which the failed reform is the “LOGO movement.” Tyack and Cuban present a story of larger scope whose plot starts with the birth of the generic twentieth century American education reform movement, develops through its interaction with School and ends leaving School essentially unchanged. The following pages are the outcome of my attempt to understand all three texts by situating them in an even larger story about change in education.”

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