Contribution-Oriented Pedagogy

Pedagogy can be described as the art or science of teaching. The question of appropriate pedagogies for distance and computer-based learning when a human teacher may or may not be involved in the teaching process has been addressed and responded to in many ways. After a brief review of different pedagogical models, a contribution-oriented pedagogical approach in which students find, create, submit, and/or share resources using a Web-based course-support environment is identified as a model that is particularly valuable for forms of distance and computer-based learning. Examples of the model in practice, issues with managing the model, and future trends related to the model are also discussed.