Sunday, November 23, 2008

NMR: Chapters 25 - 29

The majority of these chapters dealt with how everyday people, the average American of almost any age group, is able to benefit from the use of computers.  When Alan Kay's group developed the computer notebook, the creators were thinking directly about how the computer notebook, the Dynabook, could be used by people everywhere, not only by experts.  Paper's article came about in the era of the home computer, and at a time when people were thinking about the power a computer has in terms of a child's learning tendencies. 
The power of a computer as a learning tool seems almost limitless to me.  I remember one of the first times in elementary school when I had to go to a computer class.  It was experimental, meaning that parents had the option to omit their children from the program.  I was excited about it -- eager to learn about computers, aware of how much easier things could be done.  I remember what I loved most was the responsibility using a computer inherently instilled in me.  As a child, rarely are you given anything of such monetary value to call your own.  In the computer lab, each student got his or her own computer station, your own work area.  Having the machine to call your own, even if only for 45 minutes, gave me more of a desire to learn.  Because the machine seems more fun by nature, even if it is indeed giving off the same amount, same type of information, students are more apt to be excited about learning, just as I was during the first days of computer classes in lower schools.

No comments: