Research
Brief
Assembling Values: Creative Labour in EdTechThis research project will help inform my research around the kinds of work practices, skills, and values involved in creating and maintaining EdTech platforms. This will be done by engaging with staff members through observation and interviews. The project will provide much needed insight on how value is perceived in the industry and the process of creative collaboration that shape the development of EdTech platforms.The project is designed to be a collaboration that is mutually beneficial. It has the overarching goal of supporting the EdTech and creative sectors navigate the complex political economic environments, as well as improve understandings around digital labour and the implementation of technologies in education.
Why is this important?
Forecasts of the EdTech sector have been dominated by groups that are more interested in ROIs and bottom lines, rather than the future of learning. Hence, we should be wary of the hype and techno-optimism that dominates the narrative of EdTech today.
Researchers have looked mainly at the impact of the platforms once they reach the classroom or schools. Less attention has been paid to the makers of the platform and courses or lessons.
Before quantitative work dominated education research, deep and detailed ethnographic research was what nudged the creation of the field of education research.
Img 2.1. The COVID lockdowns taught us a lot about the possibilities and limitations of technology. Nearly 16 months since the school district of Cebu City closed, I visited a school in one of the most remote sections of the City to witness the first set of students returning to face-to-face class. (c) MRD
About me
I'm a PhD candidate at Deakin University, Melbourne. My research is supported by the ARC Centre of Excellence for the Digital Child.My outlook is shaped by time spent building urban data platforms for Global Urban Futures Project, working in civic tech consulting for *citygroup, and discovering the contemporary education landscape as Chair of Cebu City's Local School Board.
Who do I work with?
Prof. Julian Sefton-Green is my main supervisor. He researches young people and family use of digital technology in everyday life. His research is mainly ethnographic, focussing on socially marginalised communities, social inequality and the powerful ways that people demonstrate ingenuity, creativity and resistance often when education systems are stacked against them.
Dr. Luke Heemsbergen researches socio-technological futures with a focus on intersections of digital technology and everyday politics that form new cultures, norms, and ways that humans govern themselves and each other.
Dr. Kate Mannell is a media studies researcher whose work analyses the design, governance, and use of digital platforms, with particular focus on understanding the role of technologies in everyday life and the practices people use to regulate or resist their use. Together with Prof. Sefton-Green she leads the Mapping Media Use project in the centre.
Deakin University Ethics Approval: 2024/HE000077
The Centre works to ensure young children grow up healthy, connected, and educated in a rapidly changing digital world. We provide evidence-based transdisciplinary research related to children and digital technologies that leads to positive outcomes for children with the aim of enhancing public understanding, informing policymakers and providing guidance for families, educators and technology creators to support children to be confident growing up in the world today.
You can read more about me here or reach me via email.
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