Crossing boundaries: multimedia technology and pedagogical innovation in a high school class.

ABSTRACT

Although much has been written on computer technology and its potential for changing pedagogical practice, relatively little attention has been given as to how teachers' conceptualizations of teaching and other contextual factors relate to their actual use of these technologies. The present paper focuses on an innovative program in a Quebec high school, involving project-based teaching in networked classrooms equipped with laptop computers. One ESL language arts and two French content teachers' use of computer technology is discussed in relation to their conceptualizations of teaching and the way in which the pedagogical innovations featured in this program were supported by the broader social context. The discussion of pedagogical innovation is situated within sociocultural theory, notably in Engestrom's notion of an activity system and Tharp's views on the relationship between reform and the alignment of activity settings. Implications for language learning are addressed in terms of the affordances created within the context of this particular program. More generally, the paper argues for a vision of language learning and teaching wherein language is viewed more broadly in semiotic terms and computer technology is viewed as a representational resource within a multiliteracy pedagogy.

INTRODUCTION

Much attention is currently being devoted to understanding the role of computer and multimedia technologies in pedagogical practice. To a large degree, this interest is fostered by two key factors: changes in the world socio-economic order, frequently referred to as globalization, and the ever-increasing presence of computer technologies in daily life (Hass, 1996; Hawisher & Selfe, 2000; Murray, 2000; New London Group, 1996; Warschauer & Kern, 2000). In reflecting on these changes, educators have noted the emergence of new forms of literacy and the need for educational institutions to revise their curricula and modes of functioning in order to better prepare students for life outside of school. In keeping with this perspective, The New London Group (1996) distinguishes between "mere literacy," centered on language only, and a pedagogy of "multiliteracies" that, in addition to print, would take into account the representational resources (visual, audio, hypertext, etc.) afforded by computer and multimedia technologies. Shetzer and Warschauer (2000) use the term "electronic literacy" to refer to these new modes of communication. According to these authors, whereas information technologies were initially viewed as a means to teach language, it is now equally incumbent on instructors to help students become proficient in their use.

Although studies of innovative practice are beginning to emerge (Carey, 1999; Muller-Hartmann, 2000; Sotillo, 2000; Warschauer & Kern, 2000), few have specifically addressed how contextual factors may have facilitated (or impeded) such efforts, or indeed, how teachers' conceptualizations of teaching--their epistemological stances--may have mediated the particular practices that ultimately emerged. Most studies have dealt with university courses and been relatively short term; longitudinal studies involving elementary or high school contexts have rarely been the object of intensive study. As one contribution to this area, we report on an innovative program for Francophone high school students in Quebec City, Canada. The program was considered to be innovative in at least two ways: (a) students and teachers worked within networked classes with laptop computers, and (b) project-based teaching was a main pedagogical feature.

In this paper we first examine how the pedagogical innovations featured in this program were contingent on factors related to the broader social context and to teachers' conceptualizations of teaching. We will focus on the views of one ESL language arts teacher and two French content teachers in Grades 7 and 8 who were involved in this program. In the literature on computers and second language teaching, language teachers often appear to be working in a social vacuum as the focus tends to be on the analysis of discrete activities within a single classroom, while other teachers and the way particular pedagogical approaches emerge as a synergy amongst colleagues are rarely mentioned. Describing this program will focus more specifically on some of the implications of this particular milieu for language learning. As a first step, we will review relevant studies pertaining to teacher beliefs, social context and innovation in the use of computer technologies as well as to pedagogical innovation from a sociocultural perspective.

THEORETICAL CONSIDERATIONS

Teacher Beliefs, Social Context and Innovation in the Use of Computer Technologies

Although computers have at times been hailed for their potential to revolutionize teaching practice, recent research suggests that change is a complex matter and may be related to such factors as the materiality of the tool itself (its affordances) (1) as well as the way it is ultimately adopted or rejected by individuals in specific social settings (Haas, 1996; Hawisher & Selfe, 2000; Murray, 2000; Nicolopoulou & Cole, 1993). In one early study by Mehan (1989), in which computers were introduced into an elementary school classroom, far from revolutionizing existing practices, they were adapted by the teacher to fit in with the habitual ways of doing things. In a study by Warshauer (1999) involving a college ESL composition teacher, instead of promoting the critical, collaborative learning practices envisaged by the researcher, online resources were used to reinforce such traditional literacy activities as essay writing and grammar exercises. Factors evoked to explain this finding included not only the instructor's personal teaching philosophy but also the role of the English language program and the overall mission of the college as a religious institution.

Other studies (Murphy, 2000; Sandholz, Ringstaff, & Dywer, 1997; Warschauer & Meskill, 2000) suggest that more innovative uses of computer technologies may, in fact, be more reflective of teachers who espouse constructivist/socio-constructivist approaches to pedagogy. A 10-year study conducted by Sandholz, Ringstaff, and Dwyer (1997) demonstrated how the teachers' gradual shift towards constructivist teaching strategies, characterized by the use of projects and cross-curricular initiatives, evolved over time as they felt more at ease with the technology itself.

Sociocultural Theory and Pedagogical Innovation

Although innovation in pedagogical practice has been associated with various theoretical constructs, we draw on Engestrom's (1991) model of an activity system (Figure 1), which expands on Vygotskianinspired cultural-historical learning theory.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

In developing this model, Engestrom initially drew on Leontev's analysis of activity, defined in terms of three hierarchically related strata: Activity, Action, and Operation. At the uppermost level of this heirarchy, the targeted activity is viewed in terms of how the individual or subject (e.g., the teacher) initiating the action conceives of its underlying purpose or goal. At the second level, the targeted activity is further specified in terms of goal-specific actions and the tools used to carry them out. From a Vygotskian perspective, tools refer not only to concrete instruments but also to language/discourse, "the tool of tools" (Cole, 1995). Thus, in a teaching context, tools may refer to resources such as books, pencils, or computers, as well as modes of interaction amongst participants in a classroom (Wells, 1996). The third level pertains to the actual enactment of the activity (the object) in response to prevailing conditions. Whereas the first two levels are under the individual's conscious control, the operations, viewed as routinized procedures or strategies, function at the level of the unconscious. The actual outcome of a targeted activity is a function of how it is conceived by the individual and the tools selected to enact it.

The bottom portion of Engestrom's triangle suggests how an activity, in this instance, teaching, may be further mediated by other aspects of the activity system such as community (i.e., individuals who share the purpose of the activity), the division of labor among these individuals, and the rules that govern the activity. According to Engestrom, community in traditional teaching includes only teachers and students. In terms of the division of labor, the role of teachers is to instruct and control, while the role of students is to learn. The participant structure is that of a teacher-centered classroom where the flow of talk is between the teacher and the student. With respect to rules, strict codes of behavior and standards of grading are enforced.

Critics of traditional pedagogy (Freire, 1970; Heath, 1983; Moll & Greenberg, 1990; Siegel, 1995) have pointed to the discontinuity between the student's experience of life outside the school and school learning, which has tended to emphasize abstract, symbolic learning rather than more experiential modes, referred to by Engestrom as encapsulated learning.