Constructionism in Practice: Designing, Thinking, and Learning in A Digital WorldYasmin B. Kafai, Mitchel Resnick The digital revolution necessitates, but also makes possible, radical changes in how and what we learn. This book describes a set of innovative educational research projects at the MIT Media Laboratory, illustrating how new computational technologies can transform our conceptions of learning, education, and knowledge. The book draws on real-world education experiments conducted in formal and informal contexts: from inner-city schools and university labs to neighborhoods and after-school clubhouses. The papers in this book are divided in four interrelated sections as follows: * Perspectives in Constructionism further develops the intellectual underpinnings of constructionist theory. This section looks closely at the role of perspective-taking in learning and discusses how both cognitive and affective processes play a central role in building connections between old and new knowledge. * Learning through Design analyzes the relationship between designing and learning, and discusses ways that design activities can provide personally meaningful contexts for learning. This section investigates how and why children can learn through the processes of constructing artifacts such as games, textile patterns, robots and interactive devices. * Learning in Communities focuses on the social aspects of constructionist learning, recognizing that how people learn is deeply influenced by the communities and cultures with which they interact. It examines the nature of learning in classroom, inner-city, and virtual communities. * Learning about Systems examines how students make sense of biological, technological, and mathematical systems. This section explores the conceptual and epistemological barriers to learning about feedback, self-organization, and probability, and it discusses new technological tools and activities that can help people develop new ways of thinking about these phenomena. |
Contents
1947 | |
1959 | |
PerspectiveTaking and Object Construction Two Keys to Learning | 1978 |
Elementary School Childrens Images of Science | |
Learning Design by Making Games Childrens Development of Design | |
Electronic Play Worlds Gender Differences in Childrens Construction | |
The Art of Design | |
Building and Learning with Programmable Bricks | |
Social Constructionism and the Inner City Designing Environments | |
The MediaMOO Project Constructionism and Professional Community | |
A Community of Designers Learning Through Exchanging Questions | |
Mitchel Resnick | |
Making Sense of Probability Through Paradox and Programming A Case | |
Ideal and Real Systems A Study of Notions of Control in Undergraduates | |
Author Index | |
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Ablex activities algorithmic answer approach artifact asked behavior bigc boys build Cambridge chapter classroom cognitive complex concept Connected Mathematics construction constructionist Constructionist learning context Crazy Train create cultural discussion educational Ellie environment example experience explore feedback flowers fractions game design girls goal graders I.Harel ideas image of science implement interactions interest interviews involved Kafai knowledge learners learning LEGO Logo Media Laboratory MediaMOO messages microworld MIT Media Lab MIT Media Laboratory Mitchel Resnick neighborhood objects Papert paradox participants Piaget player playing probabilistic probability problem procedures Programmable Brick programming questions radius Resnick robot role samba school scientist sense sensor Seymour Papert Shamia Shanice situation social constructionism social setting StarLogo strategy task teacher textile designer theory things turtles understanding users video games virtual world Wilensky