Published by Education Resources Information Centre (ERIC)

This paper discusses new forms of learning emerging in higher education as a result of the new media environment learning takes place in. It argues that learners need new set of skills to be ‘knowledge-able’. It was further argued that higher education aiming to survive as an ‘edgeless university’ must embrace networking in all its forms.

One of the points I found interesting in this document is the point that the idea that of a university as a store of knowledge in now challenged by the diversification of the World Wide Web. Giving that this article was written about 15 years ago, it is interesting to note how accurate the points raised are.

It further discusses the ‘myth of the disappearing teacher and the autonomous learner’, arguing that the role of the teacher could shift towards being ‘guide on the side’ which hasn’t been the case today. Teachers/Lecturers are still being relied on to provide the necessary readings, contents of a particular course.

This was an interesting read which focused more on the issue of censorship of reading materials for students. It discussed the need to give students opportunities to engage with important content in books that might otherwise be censored. The document explores some books: Blubber by Judy Blume (1974) – focusing on bullying in young girls; Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by J.K. Rowling (2007) – this book strongly places white heterosexual males as holding the power in the magical world setting; Roald Dahl’s (1961) James and the Giant Peach and its ending scene which could remind some older readers of scenes from September 11, 2001 in New York.

This was an interesting read interesting giving that social media today plays a massive role in the censorship of contents in books deemed offensive, leading to many books being removed from libraries, curriculums and schools. This is a form of ‘gate keeping’. What do you think?

This is slightly different from the content you are referring to in your OER but it was interesting to me as a primary school teacher because I do think it is important to curate information carefully for young learners. However, this doesn’t necessary mean censoring inappropriate or offensive content, rather it means giving young learners the tools to critically examine information, providing opportunities to tackle difficult issues and engaging in a self-reflective practice as a way to objectively view own reaction to certain information.