The Teaching of Learning

Recently I find myself confronted more and more by the notion that digital learning or pedagogy is in no way the same as or on the same level as mere online teaching, online teaching may contain forms of digital learning but the fact that it is online does not necessarily make it a digital learning process.

Not every teacher can be a pedagogue and in the same breath, not every pedagogue is found in a classroom. At the very center of pedagogy you find the key concept of leadership, this leadership can take many forms, be it group leaders in school projects or a speaker at a conference. This leadership transcends the mundane, “teacher is the leader and students follow”, attitude that can be found in most learning institutes. Pedagogy does not favor one learning style over another but instead attempts to do whatever it takes to bring out the best possible result for the individual and not the most correct answer according to the textbook.

A pedagogue should have the initiative and out of the box ideas on how to tailor online technologies to his or her liking. Just as one would tailor their physical environment to their own personal pleasing, so too must one redesign the learning environment. This being done in the physical and online sense.

One need not wait to be in an authoritative position to become a pedagogue, all you require in the ability to inquire and adapt, and to base your practice on the real world which is relevant to the “students” you encounter.

Taking all of this into account, Pedagogy is not something a person can truly learn. It is purely a state of mindfulness in terms of the ever adapting and shifting world in which we live. No person will ever master the art of pedagogy simply because the world advances so quickly. However to become a good pedagogical educator one must be immersed in the world of pedagogical thinking and practice, interacting with the information and not just memorizing the content. Our technological age should not serve to replicate our educational history but to progress it, make it relevant and fun.

A digital pedagogue should not let their technologies dictate to them where and how they can be used, but instead they should make their tools work for then and allow creativity to produce better learning. We need to be more critical about the educational tools that we make use of and how they can be used more effectively.

Along with being bold and moving forward, we must be careful not to become too specialized and not to focus on a single aspect as this could lead to a much narrower view on any problem which could present itself. This fits well with a remark from Cathy Davidson which I am quite fond on, she speaks along the lines of being “perpetual learners”, setting the groundwork for lifelong learning in all aspects of life.

The best way to learn is to encounter something new for the first time, and how better to encounter new things then to forget the old things which hold you back.