Thinking of the Other: Constructivist Discourse and Cultural Difference in the Field of Educational Technology

Abstract

Learning in a technologically enhanced constructivist classroom is a practice of acculturation into a western culture of power and traditions of reasoning. For children positioned outside this culture historical practices of inclusion and exclusion erase cultural differences that make a difference in their educational lives. While constructivism may be understood by some in the field of Educational Technology as a rallying cry for the reform of schooling, it is experienced by others as an ethical crisis in the relation of the self to the other. Even as we pursue equity through the integration of technology in constructivist learning practices, we need to pause and consider how these pursuits may actually contribute to disparities between the technological haves and have-nots. The solution is not to abandon constructivism. Instead, we need to shift our constructivist practices to address the cultural, racial and gendered complexities inherent in schooling yet historically inconsistent with constructivist theory and practice.