Moving across physical and online spaces: a case study in a blended primary classroom

Abstract

With the introduction of digital tools and online connectivity in primary schools, the shape of teaching and learning is shifting beyond the physical classroom. Drawing on the architecture of productive learning networks framework, we examine the affordances and limitations of an upper primary learning network and focus on how the digital and physical elements involved in set design shape teachers' pedagogical approaches and students' learning processes. The findings suggest that blended spaces support teachers' distributed orchestration of classroom activities across tools and resources while also leveraging students' engagement in reciprocal teaching and collaborative learning.

Keywords:

• blended learning
• primary education
• technology
• productive learning network
• pedagogy

Acknowledgements

We would like to acknowledge the school, teachers, and students who participated in this research. We also would like to thank the reviewers of this article for the constructive feedback.

Funding

Patricia Thibaut Páez's contributions to this article were financially supported by the Becas Chile scholarship programme sponsored by the Chilean government. Lucila Carvalho's contributions to this article were financially supported by the Australian Research Council [Laureate Fellowship Grant FL100100203].

Notes on contributors

Patricia Thibaut is a Ph.D. Candidate at the Centre for Research on Computer Supported Learning and Cognition at the University of Sydney. Her research focuses on learning, literacy, and mobile technologies across formal and informal spaces.

Jen Scott Curwood, Ph.D., is a senior lecturer in English education and media studies at the University of Sydney, where she is affiliated with the Centre for Research on Computer Supported Learning and Cognition. Her research focuses on literacy, technology, and teacher professional development.

Lucila Carvalho, Ph.D., is a postdoctoral research associate in the Centre for Research on Computer Supported Learning and Cognition at the University of Sydney. Lucila's research involves the analysis of complex learning systems in which technology plays a key role. Her interest is on understanding relationships between knowledge, human interaction and physical and digital resources; and how these combine to form productive learning networks.

Alyson Simpson, Ph.D., is an associate professor in the Faculty of Education and Social Work at the University of Sydney. Her current research projects include work on the role of children's literature in education, the power of dialogic learning and the impact of digital technology on reading practices and pedagogy.