The educational scientist showing how learners bring creativity to EdTech

Emmanuel Béché is an educational science researcher at the University of Maroua in Cameroon. Emmanuel studies how learners use educational technology in the classroom. He is fascinated by the unexpected ways in which they employ this technology to pursue their individual goals. Annie Brookman-Byrne talks with Emmanuel about how learners facing adversity can find solutions to the challenges they face.

Annie Brookman-Byrne: What are you discovering about educational technology in the classroom?

Emmanuel Béché: School leaders tend to assume that learners use technological innovations as prescribed by school policy, but this isn’t always the case. Students sometimes use technology differently from how the school intended, following their own technological and digital interests. In my research, I am trying to understand this gap between recommendations for the use of EdTech and the ways in which these technologies are actually used. I am finding that children bring their unique strengths and resources to the use of educational technology in ways that work for them.

“My experiences have taught me that children growing up in adversity hold the key to finding the best solutions.”

ABB: How did you become interested in the innovative ways learners use technology for learning?

EB: My interest in exploring the role of learners in adopting technology stems from my childhood. My experiences have taught me that children growing up in adversity hold the key to finding the best solutions.

I grew up in an environment where learning was hindered by challenging living conditions. My family – eight children and my parents – faced severe financial constraints. Despite their best efforts, my parents struggled to provide for even our most basic needs. Every new school year, it felt like a miracle when we were able to scrape together the funds for tuition, and access to essential school resources was a distant dream. Owing to historical tensions between my ethnic group and a more dominant one, there were no schools in our village. We had to embark on a ten-kilometre journey to the nearest school. We faced discrimination and marginalization from our peers and teachers. We survived by solving problems resourcefully and finding creative solutions to every obstacle we faced.

“Children bring their unique strengths and resources to the use of educational technology in ways that work for them.”

To meet the challenge of paying our school fees, my siblings and I engaged in entrepreneurial activities such as selling wood and agricultural produce in town. We accumulated small savings, often without our parents’ knowledge. They were always pleasantly surprised when we presented the funds at the beginning of the school year. To compensate for our lack of academic resources, we formed study groups and partnered with more fortunate peers. Because of the distance between our home and school, we occasionally stayed overnight with friends who lived closer to school. While we walked home, we read and studied to make the most of the journey.

These experiences made me want to understand the ingenious strategies vulnerable children come up with to navigate the restrictive systems they find themselves in. In some of my earliest research, I found that although schools had certain guidelines stipulating how computers were to be used, students found ways to use these tools to meet their own needs and in accordance with their own preferences. This shows how vulnerability can be a wellspring of creativity and resourcefulness.

ABB: What impact do you hope your research will have on children?

EB: My research shows that when learners encounter difficulties, they find ways not only to overcome those challenges, but also to excel. Learners have the capacity to navigate the constraints they face. My findings inspire me to advocate for innovative educational methods that allow learners to be active contributors using their creativity and ingenuity.

In our rapidly evolving world, fraught with various challenges, I believe learners facing adversity can find pertinent and effective solutions. Children are not merely passive recipients of knowledge or adopters of innovations; instead, they are active contributors capable of influencing their own education. Teaching should be tailored to students’ specific needs, instilling a sense of belonging and dedication to education, and encouraging students to be proactive participants in their learning environments. This approach acknowledges learners’ agency and equips them with the skills they need to thrive, including confidence, curiosity, adaptability, and critical thinking.

ABB: What is your own approach to teaching?

EB: My research has profoundly shaped my approach to educating. Whether planning a lesson or educating my own children, I tailor my approach to my understanding of the individual and the specific qualities I’m seeking to cultivate. I build my strategies around students’ personal history, lived experiences, apprehensions, obstacles, talents, and social interactions.

Teaching is an intricate process of observing a child’s response to a tool or the learning material and then fine-tuning based on that observation. I see each child as an invaluable contributor to their own educational journey. Children possess an inherent capacity to navigate through challenges, and they are a wellspring of potential that can be harnessed to foster adaptive skills. These skills, in turn, empower them to confront the uncertainties that life presents.

“I see each child as an invaluable contributor to their own educational journey.”

ABB: What ideas are you most excited about pursuing next?

I’m keen to apply my approach to disadvantaged children in crises. How does seeing learners with their lived experience as contributors to their own education enable us to grasp the complex interactions among the emotional, social, cognitive, and environmental factors that characterize them and influence their education? In exploring this question, I understand education to be a dynamic and adaptive process which includes innovative and adaptive strategies.

I would also like to explore how this approach can foster educational inclusion and equity. How can we rethink teaching methods and educational structures to make them adaptive to learners and recognize learners’ active role in education? To answer this question, I’d love to collaborate with psychologists, neuroscientists, and sociologists to gain a better understanding of educational processes. I hope my future work will promote the educational inclusion of the most vulnerable children.