Pedagogy, for how?

Pedagogy whaaaaat?

So, in reading article 1, and article 2, I came to the very blatant observation that there are misunderstandings regarding the term "digital" and "pedagogy"... but there are also misunderstandings regarding the term "digital pedagogy". Well, now with all this confusion surrounding the term and its components, we should probably break it down (break it down). 

" Pedagogy concerns itself with the instantaneous, momentary, vital exchange that takes place in order for learning to happen. "  

I think that is brilliant. In this description it does not include anything about students and teachers and curriculum which in some sense all impose some form of limitation on learning. It concerns itself with the transfer of knowledge. But pedagogy goes further in that it also has the ability to inspire and encourage independent growth and development- what he describes as "sustained learning".

The dictionary describes digital as:

pertaining to, noting, or making use of computers and computerized technologies

They are tools which we use for learning, they have the ability to enhance a lesson, if used correctly. 

 “Digital pedagogy is the use of electronic elements to enhance or to change the experience of education.” -Brian Croxall and Adeline Koh

"Digital pedagogy is important because it is willing to improvise, to respond to a new environment, to experiment."

" Digital pedagogy is less a field and more an active present participle, a way of engaging the world"

"Digital pedagogy is less about knowing and more a rampant process of unlearning, play, and rediscovery."

So there we have it! This gives us a basic understanding of what it means to be a digital pedagogue. The Learning Management System is basically an online classroom. When we compare this to an online teacher, we can see that a digital pedagogue "looks at the options, refuses the limitations of the Learning Management System, invites her students to participate in — indeed, create — networked learning. Her practice is mindful of the landscape." 

So essentially the article is saying that teachers, when using the tools of technologies, are digital pedagogues and online teachers are... online teachers. A pedagogue is a truly unique individual, capable of inspiration and sustained development. 

After reading this article, I would also be tempted to knock over a glass or two over the misunderstanding, now that I understand the significance of a pedagogue. It is indeed a privilege, a responsibility which one should not consider lightly. To be a digital pedagogue involves innovation and adaptation and making learning relevant. 

So how does a teacher become a digital pedagogue? By asking oneself the questions which he states in the article.

• What tools are available for me and my students to play with?
• How can improvisation occur online to reinforce learning?
• Does digital learning end when the course ends, or is it sustained perpetually by the online learning environment (aka, the Internet)?
• Who are my students, and where can they be found? What are my students’ URLs? What is mine?
• Do disciplines matter online? Do canons exist? What is the point of rote memorization when everything is available online all the time?
• Where is my authority now that all authority is a Google search away?
• And most importantly: What happens when learning is removed from the classroom and exposed to the entirety of the digital landscape?

And by having fun and enjoying learning yourself! It is so important as a digital pedagogue to not only be on top of the curriculum, but to enjoy it. To not be on top of technology and understanding its relevance to the learners, but to effectively integrate it. To not only know what is going on in the world and the developments in the subjects which you teach, but to explore and solve yourself using the tools at your disposal. And this applies not only to you, but to your learners. 

This is digital pedagogy.

As always, 

watching the walking footprints.