MAKING CONSTRUCTIONISM WORK IN THE CLASSROOM

Abstract

From its inception, the idea of constructionism (Papert, 1993b) has been intertwined with the expressive power of computing technology. The introduction of LOGO made it possible for children to create computational structures that have conceptual depth and are capable of complex behaviors that can capture children’s interest and imagination (Papert, 1980; Papert, 1993a). The pace of technological progress has since accelerated, enabling the creation of new expressive media, such as Boxer, StarLogo and StarLogoT, KidSim/Cocoa, NetLogo, Swarm, and ToonTalk (diSessa, 1991; Resnick, 1997; Wilensky, 2000; Smith, Cypher and Spohrer, 1994; Wilensky, 2001; Langton and Burkhardt, 1997; Kahn, 1996), which offer a wide range of computational behaviors, striking visual effects, and highly visual representations of programs themselves. One continuing theme in the development of constructionism is the relationship between constructionist activities and the mainstream classroom. In the very beginning, the lack of computing equipment limited the use of LOGO to special situations. Today, computers capable of running interesting construction environments are widely available, though not yet truly ubiquitous. The factors that now limit children’s access to these environments in school are largely curricular: how do constructionist activities fit into the progression of learning activities that teachers organize for their students? Over the past few years, we have conducted field research in which students ranging in age from fourth grade to high school have participated in constructionist activities integrated with more traditional classwork. These activities have been supported by a visual programming environment called AgentSheets (Repenning, 1993). In our studies, we have tried to relate the potential benefits of constructionist work to the agendas of classroom teachers and have attempted to create constructionist activities that support these agendas. In this paper, we describe these efforts as case studies and draw lessons from our classroom experiences.