Sage without a stage: Expanding the object of teaching in a web-based, high-school classroom

Abstract

This paper reports on a study that uses cultural historical activity theory (CHAT) to make sense of e-teachers activity in a context of high-school distance education. Data collection involved semi- structured interviews with 13 e-teachers as well as seven management and support personnel in an organization responsible for the design and delivery of high-school distance education in the province of Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada. As well, the authors conducted a second round of interviews with 12 of the 13 teachers. Findings revealed that the traditional metaphor of teacher as sage on the stage ceased to have a reference point in the distributed online classroom. The e-teachers were widening the object of their activity to include less teacher-centered forms of learning that involved more student independence.