Achieving flexibility?

The rhetoric and reality of the role of learning technologies in UK higher education

Abstract

To what extent has recent investment in technology-enhanced learning (TEL) in UK universities helped to change academic practice? The Universities and Colleges Information Systems Association (UCISA) TEL surveys have tracked developments in learning technology provision across the higher education (HE) sector since 2001. Using the frame of Barnett’s recent ‘Conditions of Flexibility’ report this paper considers the extent to which this investment has prioritised institutional or pedagogic flexibility in learning and teaching delivery, in contrast to the traditional interpretation of flexible provision as part of learner control and choice. The paper highlights findings from the latest 2014 UCISA TEL survey presenting an overview TEL use in UK universities.