Educational Technology, Philosophical Perspectives on

Philosophy is a desire to understand the general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with reality, existence, knowledge, values, reason, and mind. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing problems by its critical and systematic approach, in particular its reliance on rational argument. It is a discipline that appraises all kinds of knowledge claims either to clarify those claims, to critique them, or propose better ways to understand them.

Don Ely’s paper, “Toward a Philosophy of Instructional Technology,” published in 1970, is an early exploration of philosophy in the field of instructional technology, in which philosophy is defined as a composite statement based on beliefs, concepts, and attitudes from which personal purpose and direction are derived. Philosophical perspectives reflect certain assumptions with respect to ...