Keynote Synopsis
It is important not to under-estimate the practical impediments to successfully implementing technology enhanced learning. Educational technology has long been an area of much enthusiasm and idealism, yet it has proven far more difficult to achieve sustained improvements ‘on the ground’.

In his talk, Neil will take the three levels of analysis that underpin this conference – student as individual, student as social being, and student as member of the community. He will examine how each of these levels corresponds to a range of broader contextual influences on how digital technologies are used (and not used) in education. The problem that we face, however, is that many ‘state-of-the-art’ discussions of educational technology pay little attention to these influences.

In contrast, Neil will argue that getting the best from digital technology requires educators and technologists to think carefully about these broader contexts of schools and universities, and how they can be worked with (and sometimes worked around). As such, the talk will consider a number of practical ways that a ‘state-of-the-actual’ approach to educational technology might be implemented.