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In our experience as educators here in the Philippines, one of the most widespread e-learning technologies, especially after the pandemic forced our hand, is the Learning Management System (LMS), like Google Classroom, Canvas, or even a basic Facebook Group used for classes. Nasanay na tayo, we’ve gotten used to them. But if we analyze the LMS using the pedagogical frameworks from our readings, we see that it’s a fascinatingly flexible tool that, more often than not, ends up reinforcing old habits instead of creating new ones. The technology itself is not the pedagogy; rather, it acts as a mirror, reflecting the instructor's own educational philosophy.

Most commonly, the use of an LMS in the Philippine setting falls squarely into the didactic/mimetic category. For many teachers, from basic education up to the university level, the LMS is simply a digital filing cabinet. It’s where they upload their PowerPoint lectures, post announcements, and administer multiple-choice quizzes. The primary mode of interaction is one-way: from teacher to student. This is the digital equivalent of a traditional lecture hall where the teacher is the "sage on the stage," and the student's main role is to absorb and replicate information. This model is built on "second-guessing the right answer" and does little to challenge the hierarchical "vertical command discourse" that has long defined our classrooms. It’s a convenient and orderly way to manage a class online, but it is not transformative.

However, the potential for a more authentic/synthetic pedagogy is clearly there. A more skilled educator can use the same LMS to move beyond simple information delivery. For example, the discussion forum can be used not for simple Q&As, but for debating case studies. The assignment submission feature can be used for project-based learning, where students submit video presentations, infographics, or research papers instead of just worksheets. Group work features can facilitate collaborative projects. In this mode, students are no longer just memorizing; they are applying, synthesizing, and creating. They are engaging in a more hands-on way, which is a significant step up from the mimetic model. This reflects an "authentic" pedagogy, which the notes define as finding "another way to the same ends"—the end being mastery of a specific skill or concept.

The true challenge, and the rarest sight, is using an LMS to achieve a truly transformative/reflexive pedagogy. This is where the technology could genuinely change the learning process. A transformative approach would leverage the LMS to de-center the teacher and foster a "collaborative knowledge ecology." Imagine a class where discussion forums are not just prompted by the teacher but are initiated and moderated by students to explore their own lines of inquiry. Or using peer-review functions where students provide "recursive feedback" on each other's work, making assessment a continuous part of learning, not a final verdict. In this model, students become "co-designers of learning" and "reflexive knowledge producers." The LMS becomes a space for dialogue, negotiation of meaning, and collaborative creation. The sad reality, however, is that this is seldom achieved. The architecture of most LMS platforms still defaults to a teacher-controlled environment, and breaking out of that requires a conscious, radical pedagogical shift from the educator—a shift that our system, quite frankly, does not yet fully support or encourage. The tool has transformative potential, but only if the hand that wields it is guided by a transformative vision.

References

Al-Samarraie, H., & Saeed, N. (2018). A systematic review of cloud computing adoption challenges in higher education. Interactive Learning Environments, 26(5), 573–588. https://doi.org/10.1080/10494820.2017.1422201

Bates, A. W. (2019). Teaching in a digital age: Guidelines for designing teaching and learning (2nd ed.). Tony Bates Associates Ltd. https://pressbooks.bccampus.ca/teachinginadigitalagev2/

Bliuc, A. M., Goodyear, P., & Ellis, R. A. (2007). Research focus and methodological choices in studies of blended learning in higher education. The Internet and Higher Education, 10(4), 231–244. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.iheduc.2007.08.001

Garrison, D. R., & Vaughan, N. D. (2008). Blended learning in higher education: Framework, principles, and guidelines. John Wiley & Sons.

Kalolo, J. F. (2019). Digital revolution and its impact on education systems in developing countries. In Education, learning, training: A new paradigm for development. IntechOpen. https://doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.88871