Lyn Goodear Flexible Learning Unit South West Institute of TAFE
As educators in the 21st century, we have the responsibility to prepare our students for an increasingly global community. We can do this in part by raising their cultural competence and ensuring an enlightened citizenship both technologically and internationally. This paper, and subsequent presentation/workshop, will look at how we can create a stronger sense of community through the purposeful construction of flexible learning models that give greater consideration to the issue of cultural diversity.
Within education circles it is generally agreed that online learning can create a strong sense of community for a wide range of students. Apart from the obvious economic benefits of tapping into the growing global learning marketplace, current research suggests that students who learn in environments where multiple and diverse perspectives are fostered and appreciated, become better critical thinkers, communicators, problem-solvers and team players.
However we must never presume that the technology can generate this sense of community and flexibility in its own right. The flexible, community based qualities of our learning environments are directly correlated to the way in which we develop and deliver the learning. This presentation/workshop will focus on how we can move from the position of deliberately seeking to exclude individual characteristics in our online learning communities, to acknowledging the need and value of diversity in today's global e-learning community.