In public debates, algorithms are receiving a more and more questionable reputation. To what extent do they control our lives and restrict our freedom of choice?
In the next video, you will see how algorithms enter education in order to create technology enhanced learning environments. The various examples may stimulate a related debate: to what extent should a learning environment be structured to prevent cognitive overload or be free to enable students to develop their own ways of knowing the world?
When you encounter the slide about this debate between Paul Kirschner and Deanna Kuhn, please think of examples of learning environments you are familiar with, which are either too loosely structured or too strictly arranged to enable students to learn something. Identifying these examples may help you to really understand what is at stake when we consider the delicate balance between structure and freedom in education.
Examples touched upon in this module: Inquiry based learning, intelligent tutoring systems, serious gaming, MOOCs.