The symposium “EdTech: Educational Technology Creating the Future of Education” at the 34th Annual Conference of the Japan Society for Educational Technology has successfully concluded. Although we were unable to take enough questions from the floor, I believe this is a theme that we should continue to consider as Educational Technology. As the organizer and coordinator of this symposium, I would like to summarize my thoughts in the hope that this will serve as a forum for discussion.

EdTech is attracting attention as a way to create innovative education and learning environments by combining Education and Technology, and as a means to foster not only subject-specific knowledge but also the knowledge creation and action-oriented skills based on that knowledge. Education is truly fundamental to supporting Japanese society for decades to come, and I believe the strong will to change education is evident not only from the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT), but also from the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Communications (MIC), each from their own perspectives. Thinking that this is a theme that the Japan Society for Educational Technology should address, I sought the cooperation of my mentors: Prof. Akahori @ ICT CONNECT 21, Prof. Yamauchi @ The University of Tokyo, Prof. Goda @ Kumamoto University, and Prof. Mima @ Future University Hakodate. I was able to invite Mr. Daisuke Asano @ METI as a keynote speaker, and Prof. Masahiro Sato @ Digital Hollywood University Graduate School, Prof. Toshinori Saito @ Seisa University, and Prof. Keishi Shimada @ Kyushu University as panelists, with Prof. Yamauchi serving as the designated discussant.

—Symposium Overview—
Mr. Asano spoke from his own experience about his work at METI, the learning gained through it, and the transformation in the joy of learning from his school days to after joining the ministry. He discussed the importance of learning through real-world social problem-solving projects (My Project)—which involves reconstructing existing premises and rules (and the conflicts in that process)—and the importance of promoting projects that can support the design, development, and social implementation of education and learning environments.
#I also spoke with Mr. Asano at the reception and received a strong message regarding future human resource development.

In the panel presentation, Prof. Sato spoke about the definition and concept of EdTech. While technology has been used in education in the past, he emphasized that EdTech focuses on the innovation visible through the combination of Education × Technology. He explained that technology will continue to evolve and can be both a medicine and a poison, so it is important to build a mechanism that effectively uses it as a medicine in education. Evolution does not stop, but the key is not the technical novelty, but the ability to grasp the essence of the problems around you and change the situation through technology. This point is also well illustrated in Edvation x Summit 2018, organized by the Edvation x Japan, for which Prof. Sato serves as Representative Director.

Prof. Saito spoke about the concept of Digital Agency being pursued at UNESCO and IFIP. He explained that while the innovation generated by promoting EdTech is, of course, for the benefit of learners and those widely involved in education, it provides concrete perspectives for beneficiaries, such as what the purpose is, what will become possible, and whether it is due to innovation through EdTech.
IFIP(International Federation For Information Processing): https://en.unesco.org/partnerships/non-governmental-organizations/international-federation-information-processing

Prof. Shimada introduced Learning Analytics research as a concrete research example, applying his field of image processing and pattern recognition to education and learning. He introduced real-time analysis (real-time analysis) that analyzes logs of class progress in real-time at Kyushu University and provides feedback to instructors, as well as an automatic generation system for individualized and optimized review materials based on quiz response status.

In the panel discussion, Prof. Yamauchi introduced examples of industry-academia-government collaborative EdTech research he has been involved in, and explained the history of promoting education and learning research utilizing ICT. Following this, a panel discussion was held, addressing questions such as the meaning of using (or not using) the term EdTech, strategies for involving the field, and expectations for the Japan Society for Educational Technology.
BEAT: https://fukutake.iii.u-tokyo.ac.jp/archives/beat/
FLIT: http://flit.iii.u-tokyo.ac.jp/index.html
#There is no archive page for MEET…

For the flow of the panel, please refer to the symposium content under the Twitter hashtag #jset34. Prof. Shigeta @ Hokkaido University and Prof. Murakami @ Kyoto University of Foreign Studies have organized the information.

———–
From the EdTech articles I have read and the discussions at this symposium, what I felt is that although there are differences in the breadth and narrowness of how education and learning are perceived (which I think strongly depends on the field targeted by Educational Technology researchers, especially formal vs. informal learning) and the backgrounds of those primarily involved, the direction we are aiming for is the same, and I believe each has different strengths.

I believe EdTech will lead to the widespread social implementation of innovative education and learning environments. To use the words of Mr. Asano and Prof. Sato, it means “seamlessly connecting places and contexts full of learning resources called My Projects that occur in various places such as local learning events, cram schools, and libraries, rather than just at school or centered on school, and supporting life-long learners (including children, of course) as a society.” To achieve this, I think we need a loose community that maintains a strong will while selecting the focus of problems and maintaining implementation speed. The latter two are where EdTech is strong.
#METI’s EdTech project. It is great to be able to see the status of adopted projects and their real-time progress one by one!!
https://www.learning-innovation.go.jp/

The approach of Educational Technology research is traditionally to “design, develop, evaluate, and solve problems based on theory regarding various issues actually occurring in education and learning environments.” It is primarily a Problem-Solution mindset based on real-world problems, rules, and situations.
Reference: For those who want to do Educational Technology research
http://mark-lab.net/?page_id=854

However, it is not the case that Educational Technology research does not consider social implementation. The reason why Educational Technology is called “engineering” lies in constructing models related to education and learning that can be utilized in various contexts. For example, teacher education research, which is one major field in Educational Technology research, used to view class design and facilitation as a craft based on the tacit knowledge of experts. However, the goal is not to leave this craft as it is, but to construct models that can widely deploy this craft and cultivate teachers into adaptive experts. Educational Technology research possesses various know-how for constructing solution models in various places related to education and learning. Instructional Design is the prime example, but there is also research using the Modified Grounded Theory Approach (M-GTA) to construct hypothesis models from qualitative data and model the situation in the field under study. There are also research teams applying Design-based research to study how designed and developed solutions are applied to the field, improved, and how they increase performance. In that process, it is also necessary to evaluate the effectiveness of the constructed models and solutions. On the technical side, Learning Analytics research has been spreading both domestically and internationally in recent years, and the technical elements related to Learning Analytics can be said to be a perfect fit for the field where EdTech is promoted.

The points mentioned above seem to be necessary elements for the major movements and transformations in education and learning that EdTech aims for. In this symposium, I was able to find many points of contact between what EdTech aims for and Educational Technology research. The ideas of education and learning to be aimed for may differ depending on the ministry, and also among researchers in the Japan Society for Educational Technology depending on their research field. However, rather than viewing them as opposing axes, I hope that by thinking about the construction of the education and learning environment to be aimed for, the human resources beyond that, the country, and the world, My Projects will spread.

I myself am also involved in a part of the METI EdTech project, albeit in a small way. Through that involvement, I hope to demonstrate what Educational Technology can contribute.

#I also talked a little with Mr. Asano and Prof. Sato during the pre-meeting and reception,
#but I think it is important to discuss these topics with junior high, high school, and university students.
#In my class in the first semester of 2018, we discussed EdTech,
#and it was a very good discussion. It is important to increase opportunities for children
#to think about EdTech, not just adults.

Regarding literature that explains terms and trends that have emerged in Educational Technology research
EdTech

Instructional Design
I think the following literature is easy to understand.

Modified Grounded Theory Approach(M-GTA)
M-GTA Research Group
https://m-gta.jp/index.html

Design-based research
Shizuoka University RECLS:What is Learning Science? (Design-based research is briefly explained)
I think the following literature is also good

Learning Analytics
Hiroaki Ogata, “Introduction and Research of Learning Analytics in Higher Education,” Japan Journal of Educational Technology, 41(3), 221-231
https://ci.nii.ac.jp/naid/130006337697
Masanori Yamada, “Current Status and Future Directions of Learning Analytics Research,” Japan Journal of Educational Technology, 41(3), 189-197
https://ci.nii.ac.jp/naid/130006337694