Reconnecting the classroom: E-learning pedagogy in US public high schools

Abstract

Giventhat most of the educational use of the Internet by American high school students occurs outside the school day, and outside the direction of teachers, this article reviews e-learning pedagogy and implementation in schools, with a view to enhancing learning both inside and outside the classroom. Key concepts such as active learning, metacognition and transfer of learning, may be promoted by e-learning applications that emphasise active engagement, social learning, continuous feedback and real world applications. This paper also explores some implementation issues including teacher training, content and application standardisation, cheating among students, and software filters and surveillance. Recommendations are made about informing and training educators as the first step in promoting classroom re-connection with outside school use of the Internet by students.