Learning to Solve Problems with Technology: A Constructivist Perspective (2nd Edition)

Rating:
Summary: A must read for teachers of all ages of students
Review: David Jonassen has written prolifically throughout his career on the importance of meaning-making as a strategy for learning when using technologies. His belief is that students should learn using technology, not learn about technology. Often termed constructivism, the authors instantly address the newness of this concept of learning but proclaim it key to other disciplines over a much greater period of time. "The popular Chinese proverb about forgetting what you tell me and remembering what I do bears witness to the ageless belief that knowledge, meaning and understanding do not exist outside of meaningful, intentional activity."

Jonassen's last volume on this topic, "Learning With Technology, A Constructivist Perspective," has been updated here with ideas for using the latest technologies in teaching. Chapters in this latest manual include Internet research, web publishing, conferencing, building communities, video, hypermedia, microworlds and virtual reality. The learning strategies described cover active learning, problem-based learning, inquiry, discourse, learning by visualizing and by constructing reality. In each case, the authors describe the learning process, the activities, the teacher's role, and forms of assessment. While students are referred to as children throughout this book and pictured on the cover, conceptually this is a topic that teachers of all ages should consider. After all, is active learning only for the young?

In another step forward for technology and teaching, the publisher has provided a companion web site, a virtual learning environment, to support both the professor and the students in their use in the book. In addition to the syllbus, objectives, quizzes and resources usually found at companion sites, this on also includes chat and a message board.

This book is a must-read for anyone teaching educators, for classroom teachers and administrators seeking ways to use technologies to most effectively support learning. Technology is no longer a tool to learn about, but to use to achieve the goals of higher order thinking. Lecture is out, active learning is in. Here is a book to help you use technology to create learning experiences your students might not have been able to have before technologies came into the classroom.