New pedagogies and re-usable learning objects: Toward a new economy in education

While the idea of reusing objects in digital learning environments is not new, continual strides are being made toward improving the prospects of reusability. However, three of the main steps in reusability—finding a pedagogy in which both contribution and reusability are regular aspects, having a convenient technology for all stages of contribution and reuse, and finding institutional motivation and support for reuse—are far from common procedures in most higher education and company training settings. In this article we describe a shift in pedagogy and technology requirements that we see as major steps in accelerating the reusability process. We also position the reusability process in a broader context: an evolution in education and training toward either a Stretching the Mold Scenario or a New Economy Scenario.