Sociology and Anthropology Vol. 2(3), pp. 78 - 94
DOI: 10.13189/sa.2014.020303
Reprint (PDF) (852Kb)

The Culturalisation of Educational Technologies: An Enquiry into Saudi Arabia

Abdulrahman Essa Al Lily ^1,*, Jed Rivera Foland ^2
1 King Faisal University, Post Box 346, Post Code 31982, Al Ahsa, Saudi Arabia
² Wolfson College, Linton Rd, Oxford OX2 6UD, UK

ABSTRACT

This work looks into the culturalisation of educational technologies, a subject that appears thus far to not have received sufficient attention from the international academic community. It is structured around the research question: How have educational technologies been exposed and subjected to the influence of societal cultures? This question is addressed by a qualitative case study of a Saudi state university, analysing its documents, interviewing its members and observing its daily social-academic dynamics. The data were interrogated using the grounded theory approach. This method of analysis thus singled out two main themes: The Influence of Societal Cultures on Educational Technologies and The Influence of Educational Technologies on Societal Cultures. A theoretical proposition arises from these themes; that the field of educational technology is a fertile ground for anthropological and historical enquiry, with possibilities for mutual feedback between societal cultures and educational technologies. The recommendation is that researchers and commentators in the field of educational technologies seek to benefit from anthropological and historical ways of thinking.

KEYWORDS
Saudi Arabia, Education, Technology, Society, History, Anthropology

Cite This Paper in IEEE or APA Citation Styles
(a). IEEE Format:
[1] Abdulrahman Essa Al Lily , Jed Rivera Foland , "The Culturalisation of Educational Technologies: An Enquiry into Saudi Arabia," Sociology and Anthropology, Vol. 2, No. 3, pp. 78 - 94, 2014. DOI: 10.13189/sa.2014.020303.

(b). APA Format:
Abdulrahman Essa Al Lily , Jed Rivera Foland (2014). The Culturalisation of Educational Technologies: An Enquiry into Saudi Arabia. Sociology and Anthropology, 2(3), 78 - 94. DOI: 10.13189/sa.2014.020303.