i Technology in Learning and Teaching in the 21st. Century
We have a myriad of internationally reviewed literature on e-learning and e-technologies. The advent of ‘m’ (Mobile) technologies added value to the ‘e’ in providing teachers and students with envisioned possibilities to enhance classrooms and design for meaningful learning in schools. Moreover, students and society in general adopted mobile technologies to bring the global village to their own workplaces and homes and in turn, challenged schools and teachers to adapt their thinking and roles to incorporate this mobility into learning. Today we see the advent of the letter ‘i’ in technology. What does this ‘i’ mean? What is inherent in this letter ‘i’ and how will this ‘i’ effect teaching and learning at this juncture of the 21st. Century?
Dr.Daithí Ó Murchú is a gaelic-medium, elementary school principal teacher in Gaelscoil Ó Doghair, Newcastle West, Ireland. In 1993 he founded the first co-educational, second level ‘ all-Gaelic Gaelcholáiste’ in the Mid-West, and in 1996, was awarded his Masters in Management and Curriculum studies in Trinity College, Dublin. Following on from his first PhD in Technology and linguistics, and subsequently in Elementary education, and eLearning, he was elected executive vice-president of human language and technology with SITE (USA). As a cultural and technology expert with the European Union’s MyEurope schools, and a member of CRELL, Learning to Learn, and 2nd. Forum for Learning EU Expert Boards, Daithí also collaborated with International universities on their distance-education, and teacher training programmes. Seconded to MIC College of Education, University of Limerick as a lecturer in Methodology of teaching Gaelic, Daithí continued to work with the Master programmes in MSc, MEd and MA in Education and ICT in the various universities. As a research fellow in ICT and Education at Trinity College, Dublin, he lectured and designed the first Gaelic, M.Sc. programme modules in Knowledge management and ICT. Presently Daithí is collaborating with Aalborg University,and Aarhus University Denmark in their Master programmes and VirtDan/CoDan linguistics projects. He serves on numerous conference review boards worldwide, and is contracted to the positions of Director of InService, Professional Development, and Director of Gaelic Methodologies with Hibernia College, Ireland. He continues to teach in Gaelscoil Ó Doghair, which is his first ‘mathethical’ love and his books, presentations and keynote speeches have been enthusiastically received worldwide.