2007 CoSN Delegation to Scandinavia Blog

In the U.S. the most prevalent answers to this question are a..that kids need to learn to use ICT since they will need to be "computer literate" in their jobs; or, b. that ICT adds value to school programs by enhancing learning/motivation. The catch term in the U.S. is: ICT integration. This means fitting ICT into the school curriculum and organizational structure of the school as it exists. Similarly the "what" and "how" in Scandinavia was also spoken of in terms of ICT integration.

U.S. technology advocates generally respond with approval when there is indication of a high level of use of the technology. Rarely, do we raise the question of whether what the technology is integrated into was worth doing in the first place or whether we are perpetuating perspectives which are no longer valid. ICT has caused deep and fundamental changes in how knowledge is created, disseminated, and used and, it has caused fundamental changes in the structure of knowledge. Moreover, the nature of schooling and the interface of schooling with the other educational resources of society which have been a consequence of IT is rarely explicitly considered. I do not believe that we can answer the "what" and "how" questions – as they should be confronted - until we confront the "why" question. In essence the "why" question is that schooling needs to be compatible with the dramatic changes in our culture with learning resources which fall outside the jurisdiction of the school and with a perspective on the structure of knowledge and skills that fits with the world outside of schools.

I really was expecting to hear and see more evidence of such thinking in Scandinavia. Even the very well-done report "E-learning Nordic 2006"
http://www.edu.fi/julkaisut/eLearning_Nordic_English.pdf passes by these issues. The closest E-learning Nordic comes to dealing with those issues is in discussing the pedagogical impact of ICT. Their finding is that ICT has had little impact in "revolutionizing the teaching learning process." Yet, as is generally the case the issue of curriculum is not considered in the report. Typically this a consequence of the fact that ICT and curriculum live in different places in school agencies. And, there was very little consideration of the issue of school organizational structures and the aptness of these structures in realignment of the institution of school with the culture as it exists....a culture that is strikingly different that the way things were even forty or fifty years ago. The schools in Sweden and Denmark did seem to function with a high degree of autonomy in comparison with how things are in the U.S. Thus, it well might be that if we had more time and capability to explore these issues at the individual school level we may have seen more evidence of this at that level. Also, during brief - coffee break - conversations suggested to me that their may be more recognition of the need to reconcile schooling with the nature of our culture in as it now exists than was apparent in the formal discussions. Nevertheless, the trip was very valuable for me.

Once again as in other encounters with our colleagues in other lands, I saw that whether we live in Kalamazoo or Copenhagen we face similar problems and I am even more committed to the principle that those of us who care about the welfare of our young people need to see the progress we can make - not as an item of international competition - but as a real manifestation of international collaboration.