"Constructivism" is an approach to education that views the teacher as more a facilitator of learning than an Instructor

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Arun-Kumar Tripathi (tripathi@amadeus.statistik.uni-dortmund.de)
Sat, 29 May 1999 20:43:05 +0200 (MET DST) 

Date: Sat, 29 May 1999 20:43:05 +0200 (MET DST)
From: Arun-Kumar Tripathi <tripathi@amadeus.statistik.uni-dortmund.de>
Subject: "Constructivism" is an approach to education that views the teacher as more a facilitator of learning than an Instructor

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Dear IFETS Colleagues - I am forwarding the article regarding
Non-Traditional Teachers More Likely to Use the Net..More details
about the article, you can read on the following site.

http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/99/05/cyber/education/26education.html

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PS: Thanks to Mr. John Walker
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--Important Excerpts from the article for discussion---

"Teachers' basic beliefs and pedagogical practices feed into whether
they use the Internet," Becker said, adding, "The teachers that
believe in focusing on what I call 'constructivism'...are much more
apt to use the Internet."

"Constructivism" is an approach to education that views the teacher
as more a facilitator of learning than an instructor of
pre-determined skills and facts. Students are encouraged to take more
control of their course of study than in conventional classrooms.
They are also encouraged to work in teams, to tackle problems that do
not necessarily have one answer and work on long-range projects.

But the so-called "constructivist" teaching style is hardly without
critics. Tom Loveless, an associate professor who teaches courses in
education policy at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of
Government, is one. He believes the most proven and measurable way
to learn is through a curriculum based on fixed content, rather than
through student exploration. He also advocates what he considers
tried-and-true teaching methods like memorization and practice. And,
he says, he fears that "it is possible for constructivist teachers
to use the Internet and simply waste kids' time."

Some more Links:
Internet links of interest to readers of the Education column =
http://www.nytimes.com/library/tech/reference/linkseducation.html

Web book report from Lee's sixth grade class
http://members.aol.com/gretchenrd/BookofThree.html

Internet Use by Teachers report
http://www.crito.uci.edu/tlc/html/findings.html

Teaching, Learning and Computing project
http://www.crito.uci.edu/TLC/

Thank you for your time.

Kind Regards
Arun Tripathi

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