All Ireland Society for Higher Education
| Name: | Elaine Maher |
|---|---|
| Email: | elmaher@ncirl.ie |
| Institution: | National College of Ireland |
Elaine Maher elmaher@ncirl.ie
National College of Ireland
Towards a Fruitful Relationship between Pedagogy and eLearning in Higher Education
Abstract. Progressions in the field of educational technologies have created multiple opportunities for educators in Higher Education (HE). Computers, along with the Internet now play an instrumental role in our lives, so much so, that educators now have the scope to expand the boundaries of the traditional lecture environment. The Internet is now being leveraged to deliver eLearning initiatives. This paper examines the current relationship between pedagogy and eLearning in the HE domain. This relationship is often seen as fraught due to a lack of quality peer-reviewed research in this field. The area of pedagogy is first introduced and its relevance to the field of eLearning explored. The paper endeavours to determine whether or not current eLearning research is sensitive of incorporating a pedagogical approach in the design and implementation stages of eLearning. This research reflects on whether or not there is a gap between eLearning and pedagogy and if it is being bridged. In l ight of the findings based on this relationship the author proposes a new pedagogically constructed model for eLearning.