How did the concept of educational technology evolve and develop?

Educational technology was developed on the basis of audio-visual teaching, program teaching and systematic design teaching around the 1920s, and it is a new branch of educational science gradually separated from the category of teaching methods.

It was formally put forward as a concept in the early 1970s. At that time, the experts and scholars of the audio-visual education movement in the United States summed up the experience and lessons of the movement for 50 years, absorbed the practice and research results of "individualized teaching" and "teaching system method", resolutely decided to rename audio-visual education as educational technology, and put forward the definition of educational technology.

In the mid-20th century, as some emerging scientific theories, such as system theory, information theory, cybernetics, communication theory and learning theory, gradually influenced the field of education, computer technology was also applied to education, forming an upsurge. Therefore, the evolution of audio-visual education movement into educational technology had its background at that time.

American Educational Technology Committee 1970 Definition

1. From a familiar point of view, educational technology refers to the media produced in the communication revolution, which can be used for teaching purposes like teachers, textbooks and blackboards. Educational technology consists of software and hardware such as television, movies, projectors and computers.

2. Educational technology is a systematic method to design, implement and evaluate the whole learning and teaching process based on the study of human learning and communication, so as to realize effective teaching.