It’s Not Just the Tool: Pedagogy for Promoting Collaboration and Community in Social Networking in CMC

Abstract

The title of this chapter suggests what is a commonplace truth among specialists in technology-based instruction: that it is not technology itself in the form of any tool that is going to necessarily lead to learning. Rather, it is learners’ use(s) of the tool in pedagogical tasks that will impact learning. And that use will often be a function of the pedagogical design of the course in which the tool is applied.

Successful integration of technology into the classroom in a pedagogically sound manner involves more than simply introducing a software program or other innovation to the students in a classroom. Technology integration must be thoughtfully planned out based on curricular goals and instructional models — implying the use of new teaching strategies that actively engage students and rely on collaboration among teachers. (Oxford and Oxford, 2009, p. 8)