wrote in Megatrends of the need
adopted the laissez-faire model of
or research bid will be aware of the
lead in the digital education of the
for the likes of schools to look to,
digital education, using it unwittingly
mindset, the detail required and the
young, and indeed the wider family,
“…a network model of organisation
24/7/365, continually enhancing
underpinning idea that every outcome
having normalised the whole-of-
and communication, which has its
their capability. It is a new global
can and must be identified.
family use of digital technology for
roots in the natural, egalitarian and
norm that goes hand-in-hand with
spontaneous formation of groups of
the ubiquitous use of personal
that the school was a unique,
in press) and being part of the 3.4
like-minded people”.
mobile technology.
stand-alone, gated community
billion plus (ITU, 2016) connected
unaffected by the wider digital
people using digital every day.
Most chose instead to do what
The other new but now long-
There was also the assumption
at least a decade (Lee & Broadie,
they had done for aeons and provide
established norm is that children
and socially networked world. The
Critically, they have done it naturally,
what they believed was best for
from two to three years onwards
global impact of the unintended and
successfully, efficiently, at no cost to
the young, within the physical
will, for the rest of their lives, take
natural evolution has shattered that
government and without any grand
place called school, using a highly
charge of their own digital education,
convenient illusion.
plan. Schools and governments have
structured linear education where
learning how to use what they want
While mention has been
every aspect was meticulously
when they want (Chaubron, 2015). It
made in previous articles on the
planned and controlled. They
will, on the experience of the last 20-
natural evolution of the digitally
believed they could, with the help
plus years, be a highly individualised
connected family (Lee & Broadie,
Connected Family, governments and
of the experts, provide the desired
digital education, where each person
2017a), the laissez-faire model of
schools could play a significant role
digital education within the walls of
shapes the evolving technology
digital education (Lee & Broadie,
in enhancing the digital capability
the traditional hierarchical industrial
as desired.
2017b) and the pre-primary digital
of children and go some way to
normalisation (Lee & Broadie,
redressing the shortcomings of
and schools can effectively impact
2017c), it bears reflecting on another
the laissez-faire model, but it will
the digital revolution until today,
the digital education of children is
very recent unplanned development
require a major rethink on the part
they implicitly believed they could
to recognise the global use of the
that is already on trend to be another
of governments and their educators.
control, and if need be, resist the
laissez-faire model and work to
game changer. Largely unnoticed
They will need to acknowledge
global megatrends, and decide
complement and enhance that model.
in the developed world, all the main
the natural unintended evolution,
mail and messaging services have
recognise they can only ever shape the megatrends, acknowledge they
age organisation. Tellingly, from the outset of
The only way governments
which aspects should be banned and
played little or no part in that natural unintended evolution. As is argued in Digitally
The Implications
in the last couple of years taken
This was particularly evidenced
The implications that flow from the
advantage of the developments
are part of a networked society and
in their choice of ‘appropriate’
natural evolution and the unintended
in artificial intelligence, voice
appreciate that if schools continue
technologies, the banning of all
on the digital education of children
recognition and video compression
as stand-alone insular institutions,
others and their rejection of the
are profound and on trend to grow.
to provide a simple-to-operate, multi-
they will continue to be dealt out of
mobile revolution. In 2016, judging
As the exponential nature of Moore’s
modal communications facility. One
the play.
from the inordinate level of control
Law kicks in, so the unintended
can dictate a note with 95 percent
imposed externally and internally
impact of the digital revolution will
accuracy (Google, 2014), send a
on most teachers’ use of digital
accelerate and widen (Helbing,
text, audio or video with a couple of
admin@interactivemediasolutions.
technology (Lee & Broadie, in press),
2014).
clicks. All these facilities are available
com.au
prevented from disrupting teaching.
governments likely believed they
The implications for governments,
on a US$22 smartphone in Nairobi. Overnight, the illiterate or semi-
For a full list of references, email
Mal Lee is a former director of schools, secondary college
had total control of the young’s
education authorities, schools and
digital education.
education researchers are particularly
illiterate young of India, China, Africa
principal, technology company
profound. Those who have worked
and the Americas found themselves
director and now author and
plus years ago. They were slow to,
in education, and particularly
able to use their verbal and visual
educational consultant. He has
or did not, understand that at least 80
educational administration and
intelligence to communicate with the
written extensively on the impact
percent of the young’s learning time
research, will be aware of the
networked world, using YouTube and
of technology and the evolution
annually was and is spent outside the
belief by those in government, the
the like, without having to use text or
of schooling.
school walls. While they unilaterally
bureaucracy and school leadership
the keyboard. They suddenly had, in
controlled the artificial world behind
that all operations must be planned,
a US$22 smartphone, an educational
experience helping schools get the
the school walls, they had long been
documented, reported upon,
tool that took them into a digital world
maximum impact on learning from
dealt out of the main game.
evaluated and quantified, with nothing
that would enhance their education,
technology. He is the Naace Lead for
left to chance. Allied was the premise
literacy and life chances – regardless
the 3rd Millennium Learning Award.
have long taken control of digital
that all change had to be linear in
of schools or government.
In his 30-plus years of working at the
education from near the beginning
nature and controlled. There was –
of the children’s life onwards
and is today – no place for natural
Conclusion
he has worked with a huge range
(Chaubron, 2015; Lee & Broadie,
evolution, unintended benefits or
Over the last 20-plus years, the
of leading schools, education
2017c). From the 1990s, all within
non-linear development. Those who
young and the digitally connected
organisations and policymakers in
digitally connected families naturally
have prepared a grant, innovation
families of the world have taken the
the UK and Europe. n
Ironically, they lost control 20-
Young people and their families
educationtechnologysolutions.com.au
Roger Broadie has wide
forefront of technology in education,
EDUCATION TECHNOLOGY SOLUTIONS | 17