Retro-fitting technology solutions to solve educational problems? Discussions with staff on ICT use

Robert Fox, Allan Yuen, Colin Evers, H F Lau and Deng Liping
University of Hong Kong
Hong Kong SAR, China

Universities are caught within a time of rapid political, socio-economic and technological change. The many internal and external pressures on universities have created the need to look at teaching and learning patterns and practices from a new perspective to meet the challenges created by knowledge-based societies (Pittinsky, 2003). These pressures include a demand for a greater number of higher education places but no corresponding increase in funding (Phillips, 2005); a larger 'clientele' of learners from varied backgrounds, with diverse needs, motivations, abilities, learning preferences, time availability and course content requirements (Bates, 2005); a demand for more client-responsive and flexible courses (Ryan & Stedman, 2002; McInnis & Hartley, 2003); the need to seek alternatives to government funding (HEFCE, 2001); and technological opportunities and the drive to use information and communication technologies (ICTs) in teaching and learning (Allen & Seaman, 2004; Challis, Holt, & Rice, 2005). Based on data collected from one university, this paper examines the use of ICT within one faculty, focusing on staff perceptions of how ICTs provide benefits to learning and teaching, and raises a number of issues that need to be addressed before such technologies can be successfully integrated into sustainable and transferable mainstream teaching and learning practices. ICTs in this paper refer to digital technology, primarily online, which is used to provide e-learning opportunities that supplement or replace conventional face-to-face teaching and learning.