Technology and Education—Why It’s Crucial to be Critical

Abstract

Critical analyses of technology and education appear to be enjoying a modest renaissance of late. A few conferences in this area have recently chosen “A Critical Perspective” (or similar sentiment) as their stated theme. It also seems that more articles, books, blogs, and tweets are being written by academics looking to take a critical stance on the topic. I would stop short of concluding, however, that we are in the midst of some sort of “critical turn” that might atone for previous decades of technological “boosterism,” hyperbole, and outright evangelism. Instead, I suspect that it is simply easier in this age of online retrieval to root out critical work if one is that way inclined. It is likely that I am now coming across more critical work in this field primarily because I am looking for it and/or it is being pushed algorithmically toward me. It is highly probable that any real increase in the critical literature is being mirrored by an even greater expansion of (over) positive commentary. Collections of writing such as Critical Perspectives on Technology and Education are to be welcomed, but they should not be taken as proof that such views are now in the ascendant.