ICT-INTEGRATION IN LEARNING ORGANISATIONS: POTENTIALS OF THE ’INTERMEDIATE SPACE’ FOR VIRTUAL LEARNING ENVIRONMENTS

Andrew Hall
University of Manchester
UK

Claudia Zentgraf
Institute of General and Vocational Pedagogy
Technische Universität Darmstadt
Germany

This paper explores the concept of ‘intermediate space’ as a method of understanding the role of learning spaces in the development of technology enhanced educational organisations. Sesink (2002) refers to the English psychoanalyst and paediatrician D. W. Winnicott (1971) and describes intermediate space as a transitional object or phenomena: the potential space, the area of joint cultural experience for learners where personal knowledge, development and social interaction promote a learners’ initiative and individual learning. To facilitate such constructivist processes requires an encouraging and protected space — one which promotes active, individual and reflective knowledge construction (Jonassen, 1991). An understanding of the role of ‘intermediate space’ in educational organisations in both virtual and ‘real’ architectures can encourage the development of process-related media competences, e.g. the ability for self- organised learning.

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