Technocentrism

Technocentrism is the tendency to view technology as a central component for addressing complex social issues and driving transformative changes. In the context of education, technocentrism manifests as an excessive focus on the use of technology in teaching, learning, and assessment processes through prioritising the adoption of technological tools, platforms, and digital resources to enhance educational outcomes without adequately considering the broader educational context. According to Papert (1987), technocentric thinking leads to questions that investigate the impact of technology on human interaction and development, such as learning, without considering the complexity of the context in which the technology is situated. Technocentric thinking separates digital technologies from their social and cultural context and suggests a one-way influence of technology on educational policies and practices, including pedagogy, teacher roles, and education objectives. Researchers in the digital education field have proposed several approaches to address technocentrism in education by acknowledging the role of technology and the complexity of the relationships between different social and material components in the educational setting (cf., Brennan, 2015; O’Donoghue et.al, 2001; Papert, 1988).