Beyond Technology

BeyondTechnologyoffersachallengingnewanalysisoflearning,youngpeopleanddigitalmedia.Disputingbothutopianfantasiesaboutthetransformationofeducationandexaggeratedfearsaboutthecorruptionofchildhoodinnocence,itoffersalevel-headedanalysisoftheimpactofthesenewmediaonlearning,drawingonawiderangeofcriticalresearch.Buckinghamarguesthatthereisnowagrowingdividebetweenthemedia-richworldofchildrenslivesoutsideschoolandtheirexperiencesoftechnologyintheclassroom.Bridgingthisdivide,hesuggests,willrequiremorethansuperficialattemptstoimporttechnologyintoschools,ortocombineeducationwithdigitalentertainment.Whiledebunkingsuchfantasiesoftechnologicalchange,Buckinghamalsoprovidesaconstructivealternative,arguingthatyoungpeopleneedtobeequippedwithanewformofdigitalliteracythatisbothcriticalandcreative.BeyondTechnologywillbeessentialreadingforallstudentsofthemediaoreducation,aswellasforteachersandothereducationprofessionals.