Page 115 - Education in a Digital World

102 Local Variations

of imaginative Orientalism, where the post-industrial East is venerated as somehow
being more technologically attuned and inclined than the industrial West. Indeed, it
has been argued that Western (especially North American) commentators have long
held a misplaced fascination for the apparently roboticised nature of social relations
within Japanese society and Japanese classrooms (see Cummings 1989). In con-
sidering these examples of local forms of educational technology provision and
practice, it is important to resist replicating unfounded national generalisations and
cultural mythologising (see Takayama 2011).
Thus, while adding to the richness of our understanding of educational technol-
ogy, all the analyses of ‘local’ factors presented in the chapter should be seen as
generalised and not without their problems. As Macfadyen (2011, p.280) reasons,
any functionalist ‘national culture’ approach to education technology – such as
descriptions of the Confucian or Taoist tradition – will inevitably over-simplify the
“multiple and dynamic conditions influencing the field of cultural practices in
human societies”. In raising the need to be aware of the influence of these issues,
we should remain mindful of the dynamic nature of any individuals’ circumstances
and their scope for individual agency within local contexts. Rather than attribute
technology (non)use solely to issues relating to ‘national culture’ or dominant religion
or philosophy, we need to consider the specific and situational conditions and social
forces that bring such groupings into being, and with which they continue to
interact (Macfadyen 2011). In this sense, it would be unwise to presume a cultural
homogeneity and denial of plural perspective within any local setting or grouping.
The overriding argument that should emerge from this chapter is simply that matters
of local context need to be added to any account of education and technology. As
Andrew Brown (2009, p.1147) reasons:

The point here is that, again, the form of realization of this digital technology
in practice relates to the context in which it is embedded. As the technology
moves from place to place, its meaning changes. The technology itself is both
re-contextualized and re-contextualizing.

In this sense, we must add the issues and factors raised in this chapter to the
multi-layered picture of education and technology that is emerging as this book
progresses. The global forms and trends outlined in Chapters 3 and 4 still stand, and
care should be taken when considering the points made in this chapter to avoid
becoming “immured to the ghetto of the local” (Chakravartty and Sarikakis
2006, p.171). As we develop the depth and breadth of our discussion throughout
forthcoming chapters in this book, it is important to remember that a balance is
required in any analysis. At best, then, we should take up Joel Spring’s (2009, p.143)
conclusion that:

the findings of culturalists do not negate the existence of this superstructure,
but they do bring into question their actual impact on local policies …