I was more familiar with the term authentic learning than with authentic pedagogy. My background is in vocational education and training where authentic learning is associated with learning in real life and real work conditions. This can be in the work place or situation that simulate real situations. Learners can develop competence by solving unpredicted real life problems. Authentic pedagogy is very similar as it stimulates learners to explore real life situations. This has an impact both on learning and assessment.

The ideas of John Dewey on experiential learning really inspired me.

You can read his book Experience and Education here online

While exploring the term authentic pedagogy on ERIC, I found this practical guide “Authentic Pedagogy: Standards That Boost Student Performance.” Newmann, Fred M.; And Others; Issues in Restructuring Schools, n8 Spr 1995.  It offers much more that a set of standards and really worthwhile even if it is already 25 years old. It describes general criteria for authentic pedagogy, instructional activities rooted in a primary concern for high standards of intellectual quality, as well as more specific standards that can be used to judge the quality of assessment tasks, classroom lessons, and student performance.

In vocational education and training authentic pedagogy is quite an obvious approach as learning are prepared for acting in real world situations, but it is less widespread than you would expect. In 2015 a study took place in ten European countries that explored authentic pedagogy. "Vocational pedagogies and benefits for learners: practices and challenges in Europe"  It analysed practices based on 8 criteria borrowed from a theoretical model from Elly De Bruijn, a Dutch scholar. These criteria included (a) development of vocational identity: (b) authenticity of tasks: (c) reconciliation of learning experiences including theory and practice ; (d) construction of knowledge by learners: (e) adaptive instruction and modelling (f) coaching (g) development of self-organisation skills (h) development of reflection by learners. The study found that pedagogical change was often advocated but not implemented.

Questions remaining

• I would like to understand why these ideas have not been more practiced and how eLearning could support them?
• I am interested in blended learning; i.e. combinations of face-to-face learning, eLearning and other forms of learning, in particular experiential learning and understand how to combine these. In that context I would also like to understand the limitations of eLearning in authentic pedagogy.