Date:         Mon, 7 Feb 2000 17:23:26 -0500
Reply-To:     CS92-L List <CS92-L@LISTSERV.BROWN.EDU>
Sender:       CS92-L List <CS92-L@LISTSERV.BROWN.EDU>
From:         emily rose bolon <ebolon@BROWN.EDU>
Subject:      for tomorrow's class
Content-Type: multipart/alternative;

hi everyone.

tomorrow we will discuss dewey in class. in the spirit of experiential learning and of engagement, everyone will be participating in some way. accordingly, come prepared to discuss the essay and to share your own educational experience, be it traditional, progressive, or something else altogether. some questions to think about in the meantime:

1) dewey makes some generalizations as to how "traditional" and "progressive" schools approach teaching and learning. do we accept the legitimacy of these categories? in the years that have elapsed since dewey's time, has a middle ground emerged that incorporates elements of both classifications? if the educational system as a whole continues to fail students, is it for the reasons dewey cites?

2) how can technology be used to reconcile the schism between traditional and progressive learning experience in the classroom? is technology inherently biased toward traditional learning, i.e. the transmission of an established body of knowledge from the teacher to the student, is it instead a progressive means for furthering "the most important attitude, which is that of desire to go on learning," (47) or is simply neutral with respect to dewey's models of schools?

3) the role of the educator is to serve not as "an external boss or dictator", but rather as "a leader of group activities" who has the group's interest in mind and who can ascertain the "direction" in which each learning experience is heading. (59) how does the introduction of the computer into the classroom affect the group dynamic? how much control should the educator exercise over the means in which the computer is used by the students? can an educator fairly assess the impact of a technological medium with which she may not be familiar herself?

4) dewey asserts that the environment in which a student learns plays a significant role in shaping her learning experiences. how does/could the introduction of the computer into the classroom alter the traditional educational environment?

5) dewey also recognizes the importance of continuity and connectedness between learning experiences. he claims that the basis of further learning is existing experience. (75) computerized curriculums/lessons could allow students to move at their own pace through a body of related material. how would this use of computers affect dewey's "interaction" between external conditions and internal student needs? how could the student be actively engaged rather than passively absorbing previously formed bodies of knowledge?

see you all tomorrow. -emily


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