What is meaningful learning

1. WhatIsMeaningful
learning?
Jonassen, D., et al. 2008, Meaningful Learning with Technology, 3rd edn,
Pearson Education, Upper Saddle River, New Jersey, pp.1-12.

2. 2 Chapter1
Whatdriveslearning,more thananythingelse,isthe understandingofandeffort
.-investedincompletingataskoractivity.Itisthenatureofthetask thatstudents
.intendtoperformthatwillbestdeterminethenatureofthelearning thatresults.
Unfortunately,thenatUreofthetask thatsomanystudentsmostcommonlyexpe­
rienceinschoolsiscompletingstandardizedtests.Schools inAmericahave
becometestingfactories.Federallegislation hasmandatedcontinuoustestingof
K-12studentsinordertomakeschoolsandstudentsmoreaccountablefortheir
learning.
Inordertoavoidcensureandlossoffunding, manyK-12schoolshave
adoptedtestpreparationastheirprimarycurriculum.Perhapsthemost
unfortu­
nateepiphenomenonofthisprocessisthe currentgenerationofstudentswhowill
completetheirK-12educationknowingonlyhowtotaketests.Because the
purposeofthosetests andthepreparationsupportingthemistoattaina passing
score(relativetootherschools),thestudentsareseldomfullyinvestedinthe
process,so theymakenoattempttounderstandtheknowledgebeingtested.The
studentsdonotasktotakethetests.Thetestsassessskills andknowledgethatare
detachedfromtheir everydayexperience,sothey havelittlemeaning.Thetesting
processis
individual,sostudentsareenjoinedfrom cooperatingwithothers.The
testsrepresentonlyasingleformof
knowledgerepresentation,so studentsarenot
abletodevelopconceptual understanding,whichrequiresrepresenting whatyou
knowinmultipleways.Simplystated,learningtotaketests doesnotresultin
meaningfulleammg.
Inorderforstudentstolearnmeaningfully,they mustbewillfullyengaged
inameaningfultask.Inorderformeaningfullearningtooccur,thetask that
stu­
dentspursueshouldengageactive,constructive,intentional,authentic, andcoop­
erativeactivities.Rather thantestinginertknowledge,schoolsshouldhelpstu­
dentstolearnhowtorecognizeandsolveproblems,comprehendnew
phenomena,constructmentalmodelsofthosephenomena,and,givenanewsitu­
ation,
setgoalsandregulatetheir ownlearning(learnhowtolearn).Tasks that
require.intentional,.active,constructive,cooperative,andauthenticlearning
processes(seeFigure1.1)willresult inmoremeaningfullearning.Althoughtech­
nologies
canbeusedtoprovideadditionaltestingpractice, whentheyare usedto
engagestudents
illactive,constructive,intentional,authentic,andcooperative
learning,the studentswillmakemoremeaning.Theseattributesofmeaningful
learningwillbeusedthroughouttheremainderofthisbookasthegoalsfor using
technologiesaswellasthecriteriafor evaluatingtheusesoftechnology.Let's
examinetheseattributesalittle moreclosely.
•
Active(Manipulative/Observant)Learningisanatural,adaptive
humanprocess.Humanshavesurvivedandthereforeevolvedbecausethey were
ableto learnaboutandadapttotheirenvironment. Humansofallages, without
theinterventionofformalinstruction,havedevelopedsophisticatedskillsand
advancedknowledgeabouttheworldaroundthemwhentheyneedtoorwant
to.Whenlearningaboutthingsinnaturalcontexts,humansinteractwiththeir
environmentandmanipulatetheobjectsinthatenvironment,observingthe
effectsof theirinterventionsandconstructingtheirowninterpretationsofthe

3. WhatIsMeaningfullearning?
Active
Manipulative/Observant
3
Intentional
Gaoldirected/Regulatory
Constructive
Articulative/Reflective
Authentic
Complex/Contextualized
Cooperative
Collaborative/Conversational
Figure1.1CharacteristicsofMeaningfulLearning.
phenomenaandtheresultsoftheirmanipulations.Forinstance,before playing
sandlotbaseball,dokidssubjectthemselvestolecturesandmultiple-choiceexam­
inations
aboutthetheoryofgames,theaerodynamicsoforbs,
andvectorforces
applied'tothem?No!Theystart swingingthebatand'chasingflyballs, andthey
negotiatetherulesastheyplaythegame. Throughformalandinformalappren­
ticeshipsincommunitiesofplay andwork,learners developskillsandknowledge
thattheythensharewithothermembersofthosecoIIlIriunitieswithwhomthey
learnedandpracticedthoseskills. Inallofthesesituations,learnersareactively
manipulatingtheobjectsandtoolsofthe tradeandobservingtheeffectsof what
theyhavedone.The youngsterwhoconsistentlyhitsfoulballswilladjusthisor
herstanceandhandgriponthebatin ordertomanipulatethe'pathofflightand
observetheeffectsofeachmanipulation. Meaningfullearningrequireslearners
whoareactive-activelyengagedbyameaningfultaskin whichtheymanipulate
objects
andparametersoftheenvironmenttheyare workinginandobservingthe
resultsoftheirmanipulations.
•Constructive
(ArticulativelReflective)Activityisnecessarybutnotsuffi­
cientfor
meaningfulleaming.Itisessentialthatlearnersarticulate whattheyhave
accomplished
andreflectontheiractivity andobservations-tolearnthelessons
thattheiractivity hastoteach.Newexperiencesoften provideadiscrepancy
between
whatlearnersobserve andwhattheyunderstand.Thatis whenmeaning­
fulleamingbegins.Theyarecuriousaboutor puzzledbywhattheysee.Thatpuz­
zlementisthecatalystfor
meaningmaking.Byreflectingonthepuzzlingexperi­
ence,learnersintegratetheir
newexperienceswiththeirpriorknowledgeaboutthe
world,ortheyestablishgoalsfor
whattheyneedtolearninordertomakesense out
ofwhattheyobserve.Learnersbeginconstructingtheir ownsimplementalmodels
thatexplain
whattheyobserve,andwithexperience,support,andmorereflection,
their
mentalmodelsbecomeincreasinglycomplex.Ever morecomplexmodels
require
thatlearnersmentallyrepresenttheirunderstanding indifferentwaysusing
different
thoughtprocesses.Theactive andconstructivepartsofthemeaningmak­
ingprocessaresymbiotic.Theybothrely
ontheotherformeaningmakingtooccur.

4. 4 Chapter1
•Intentional(Goal-Directed/Regulatory)Allhumanbehaviorisgoal
directed(Schank, 1994).Thatis,everythingthat wedoisintendedtofulfillsome
goal.
Thatgoalmaybesimple,likesatiating hungerorgettingmorecomfortable,
oritmaybemore
cqmplex,likedevelopingnewcareerskills orstudyingfora
master'sdegree.Whenlearnersareactively andwiUfullytryingtoachieveacog­
nitivegoal(Scardamalia
&Bereiter,1994),theythink andlearnmorebecausethey
arefulfilling
anintention.Technologies havetraditionallybeenusedtosupport
teachers'goals butnotthoseoflearners.Technologies needtoengagelearnersin
articulatingand
represel)tingtheirunderstanding,notthatofteachers.When
learnersusetechnologies'to representtheiractionsandconstruction,they under­
standmoreandarebetterableto usetheknowledgethatthey haveconstructedin
newsituations.Whenlearnersusecomputerstodoskillfulplanningfordoing
everydaytasksorconstructingandexecutinga waytoresearcha problemthey
wanttosolve,theyareintentional andarelearningmeaningfully.
•
Authentic(Complex/Contextual)Mostlessonslearned inschoolsfocus
ongeneralprinciples or
theorie~ thatmaybeusedtoexplainphenomenathatwe
experience.However,teachers andprofessorsremovethoseideasfromtheir natural
contextsin ordertobeabletocoverthecurriculum moreefficiently. Whentheydo,
theystripthoseprinciplesofthecontextualcuesthatmakethemmeaningful.
Physicscoursesarea primeexample.Teachl;rsreadasimplifiedproblem andimme­
diately
representtheprobleminaformula.Studentsmay
It:;arntogetthecorrect
answer,
butwhataretheylearning?Learning isn't
IT).eaningfulbecausestudents
learnedto understandtheideasonlyasalgorithmicproceduresoutsideof anycon­
tex.t,sotheyhave noideahowtorelatetheideastoreal-worldcontexts.Everything
physicalthatoccurs
intheworldinvolvesphysics. Whynotlearnphysics through
baseball,driving,walking, orvirtuallyanyotherphysicalprocess onearth?
Mostcon!emporary
resear<;honlearninghasshownthatlearningtasks that
aresituatedinsomemeaningfulreal-worldtask orsi,mulatedinsomecase-based
orproblem-basedlearningenvironmentare.notonlybetterunderstoodand
rememberedbutalsomoreconsistentlytransferredto newsituations.Rather than
abstractingideasinrulesthatarememorizedandthenappliedtoothercanned
problems,iearning shouldbeembeddedill.real-life,usefulcontextsforlearnersto
practice
usingthoseideas.. .
•
Cooperative(Collaborative/Conversational)Humansnaturallywork
togetherinlearningandknowledge-building
communi~ies, exploitingeachothers'
skills
andappropriatingeachothers'knowledge. Intheeverydayworld, humans
naturallyseek outotherstohelp themtosolveproblems andperformtasks.Then
whydoeducatorsinsistthatlearners workindependentlysomuchofthetime?
Schools
generallyfunctionbasedonthebeliefthatlearningisanindependent
process,solearners seldomhavetheopportunityto"doanythingthatcounts"in
collaborativeteamsdespitetheir naturalinclinations.Whenstudentscollaborate
.withoutpermission,educators mayevenaccusethemofcheatingdespitethefact
thatsuchcross-fertilizationis encouragedinanyself-respectingdesignstudio.
However,webelievethatrelyingsolely onindependentmethodsofinstruction

5. WhatIsMeaningfulLearning? 5
cheatslearners outofmorenaturalandproductivemodesofthinking.Often,edu­
catorswillpromotecollaborative
methodsoflearning,onlytoresorttoindepen­
dentassessmentoflearning.Learners,theybelieve, mustbeaccountablefortheir
ownknowledge,so evenifyouagree,at leastinprinciple, withcollaborativelearn­
ingprinciples,the hardestpartofapplyingyourbeliefswillbeassessinglearnersin
teams.Mostofthetechnology-basedactivitiesdescribed
throughoutthisbookare
moreeffectively
performedcollaborativelyingroups,so wemustassesstheper­
formanceof
thegroupsaswellasindividuals.Learnersarestrategic enoughto
know"whatcounts",inclassrooms,soiftheyareevaluatedindividually,collabora­
tive
learningactivitieswillfailbecause studentsrealizethattheiroutcomesare
notimportant.
Collaborationmostoftenrequiresconversationamongparticipants.
Learnersworkingingroupsmustsociallynegotiatea commonunderstandingof
thetask
andthemethodstheywillusetoaccomplishit.Thatis,givenaproblem
ortask,peoplenaturallyseekoutopinionsandideasfromothers.Technologies
can
supportthisconversationalprocess byconnectinglearners inthesameclass­
room,acrosstown,oraroundtheworld(seechapters6and7).Whenlearners
becomepartofknowledge-buildingcommunitiesbothinclassandoutsideof
school,theylearnthattherearemultiple
waysofviewingtheworldandmultiple
solutionsto
mostoflife'sproblems.Conversation shouldbeencouragedbecause
itisthe
mostnaturalwayofmeaningmaking.
Asisdepicted
inFigure1.1,thesecharacteristicsofmeaningfullearningareinter­
related,interactive;
andinterdependent.Thatis"learning andinstructionalactivi­
ties
shouldengageandsupportcombinationsofactive,constructive,intentional,
authentic,
andcooperativelearning.'Why?
Be\=ausewebelievethatthesecharac­
teristicsaresynergetic.Thatis,learningactivities
thatrepresentacombinationof
thesecharacteristics'result
inevenmoremeaningfullearning thantheindividual
characteristics
wouldinisolation.
Thereare
manykinds,ofleamingactivities
thatengagemeaningfulleaming,just
asthereareteachers
whoforyearshaveengagedstudentsinmeaningfulleaming. We
arguethroughoutthisbookthattechnplogiescan
iilld,shouldbecomethetoolsof
meaningfullearning.Technologiesafford
studentstheopportunitiestoengagein
meaningfulleaming
whentheyleamwiththetechnology,notfromit.
HowDoesTechnologyFacilitateLearning?
LearningFromTechnology,
Someofthefirsteducationaltechnologieswereillustrations in17th-centurybooks
andslatechalkboardsin18th-centuryclassrooms.Educationaltechnologiesinthe
20th
centuryincludelantern-slideandopaqueprojectors,laterradio, andthen
motionpictures,Duringthe1950s,
progranimedinstructionemergedasthefirsttrue
educationaltechnology,thatis,thefirsttechnologydevelopedspecificallytomeet

6. 6 Chapter1
educationalneeds.Witheveryothertechnology,includingcomputers,educatorsrec­
ognizeditsimportance
anddebatedhowtoapplyeachnascentcommercialtechnol­
ogyforeducationalpurposes.Unfortunately,educators
havealmostalwaystried
tousetechnologiestoteach
studentsinthesamewaysthatteachershadalways
taught.50information wasrecordedinthetechnology(e.g.,thecontentpresented by
filmsandtelevisionprograms), andthetechnologypresentedthatinformationtothe
students.Thestudents'
-rolewastolearnthe,informationpresented bythetechnol­
ogy,justastheylearnedinformationpresented bytheteacher.Theroleofthetech­
nology
wastodeliverlessonstostudents,justastrucksdelivergroceriestosuper­
markets(Clark,1983). Ifyoudelivergroceries,peoplewilleat.Ifyoudeliver
instruction,studentswilllearn. Notnecessarily!Wewilltellyouwhylater.
The
introductionofmodemcomputertechnologiesinclassroomshasfol­
lowedthe
samepatternofuse.Beforethe advent
ofmicrocomputersinthe1980s,
mainframecomputerswereusedtodeliverdrill andpracticeandsimpletutorials
for
teachingstudentslessons.Whenmicrocomputersbeganpopulatingclass­
rooms,the
naturalinclination.wastouse theminthesameway.A1983 national
surveyofcomputerusesshowedthatdrillandpracticewasthemostcommonuse
ofmicrocomputers(Becker,1985).
Later
inthe1980s,educatorsbegantoperceivetheimportanceof computers
asproductivitytools.Thegrowingpopularityofwordprocessing,databases,
spreadsheets,graphicsprograms,anddesktoppublishingwasenablingbusi­
nessestobecome moreproductive.50 studentsinclassroombeganwordprocess­
ing
andusinggraphicspackages anddesktoppublishingprogramstowritewith
(seechapter4).
Thistoolconceptionpervadedcomputeruseaccordingtoa1993
studybyHadleyand5heingoldthatshowedthatwell-informedteacherswere
extensivelyusingtextprocessingtools(word'processors),analytic andinforma­
tiontools(especially databasesandsomespreadsheetuse),andgraphicstools
(paintprogramsanddesktoppublishing)alongwithinstructionalsoftware
(including problem-solvingprogramsalongwithdrillandpracticeandtutorials).
Thedevelopmentofinexpensivemultimediacomputersandtheeruptionof
the
Internetinthemid-199ps'quicklychangedthenatureofeducationalcomput­
ing.Communicationstool's(e.g.;e-mail andcomputerconferences)andmultime­
dia,littleusedaccordingto
Hadley'and5heingold,havedominatedtheroleof
technologiesintheclassroomeversince.But whatarethestudentsproducing?
Toooften,theyare usingthetechnologyto reproducewhattheteacherortextbook
told
themorwhattheycopyfromtheInternet.
Ourconceptionofeducational computingandtechnologyuse,describednext,
does
notconceiveoftechnologies'asteachers orrepositoriesofinformation.Rather,
webelievethat, inordertolearn,
student~ shopldteachthe computerorusethe
technologytorepresent
whatthey
knowratherthanmemorizingwhatteachersand
textbookstellthem.Technologies providerichandflexiblemediaforrepresenting
whatstudentsknowand,whattheyarelearning.Agreatdealofresearch oncom­
putersandothertechnologieshas shownthattheyare nomoreeffectiveatteaching
studentsthanteachers/butifwebeginto thinkabouttechnologiesaslearningtools
that
studentslearnwith,notfrom,thenthenatureofstudentlearningwillchange.

7. WhatIsMeaningfulLearning? 7
LearningWithTechnology
Ifschoolsaretofostermeaitingfullearning,thenthewaysthatweusetechnolo­
gies
inschoolsmustchangefromtechnology-as-teachertotechnology-as-partner
inthelearningprocess.Before, wearguedthatstudentsdonotlearnfromtechnol­
ogy
butthattechnologiescansupportproductivethinkingandmeaningmaking
bystudents.Thatwillhappenwhenstudentslearnwiththetechnology.Buthow
dostudentslearnwithtechnologies?Howcantechnologiesbecomeintellectual
partnerswith
students?Throughoutthisbook,weassumethefollowing:
•
Technologyismorethanhardware.Technologyconsistsalsoofthe
designs
andtheenvironmentsthatengagelearners.Technologycanalso
consistof
anyreliabletechnique ormethodforengaginglearning,suchas
cognitivelearningstrategies
andcriticalthinkingskills.
•
Learningtechnologiescanbeanyenvironmentordefinablesetofactivi­
ties
thatengagelearnersinactive,constructive,intentional,authentic, and
cooperativelearning.
•Technologies
arenotconveyorsorcommunicatorsofmeaning.Nor
shouldtheyprescribeandcontrolallofthe learnerinteractions.
•Technologies
supportmeaningfullearning.whentheyfulfilla learning
need----;-wheninteractionswithtechnologiesarelearnerinitiatedand
learnercontrolledandwheninteractionswitDthetechnologiesarecon-
ceptuallyandintellectuallyengaging. .
•Technologies
shouldfunctionasintellectualtool
kit~thatenablelearners
to
buildmoremeaningfulpersonalinterpretationsandrepresentationsof
theworld.Thesetoolkits
mustsupport
theintellectualfunctions thatare
requiredbyacourseofstudy.
•Learners
andtechnologiesshouldbeintellectualpartners,wherethecog­
nitiveresponsibilityfor
performanceisdistributedbythepartofthepart­
nershipthatperformsitbetter.
HowTechnologiesFosterLearning
Iftechnologiesare usedtofostermeaningfullearning,thentheywillnotbeused
asdeliveryvehicles.Rather,technologies shouldbeusedasengagersandfacil­
itatorsofthinking.Based
onourconceptionof meaningfullearning(Figure1.1),
wesuggestthefollowingrolesfor technologiesinsupportingmeaningful
learning:
•Technologyastoolsto
supportknowledgeconstructi(;m:
•forrepresenting
learners'ideas,understandings,andbeliefs
•for
producingorganized,multimediaknowledgebasesbylearners
•Technologyas
informationvehiclefor exploringknowledgetosupport
learningbyconstructing:
Dforaccessingneededinformation
•for
comparingperspectives,beliefs, andworldviews

8. 8 Chapter1
•Technologyasauthenticcontextto supportlearningbydoing:
•for
representingandsimulatingmeaningfulreal-worldproblems,
situations,andcontexts
•forrepresentingbeliefs,perspectives,
arguments,andstoriesofothers
ofordefiningasafe,controllable problemspacefor studentthinking
•Technologyassocial mediumtosupportlearningbyconversing:
oforcollaboratingwithothers,,
ofor
discu~sing, arguing,and,l;mildingconsensusamongmembersofa
community
oforsupportingdiscourseamongknowledge-buildingcommunities
•Technologyasintellectual
partner(Jonassen,2000)to supportlearningby
reflecting:
oforhelpinglearnerstoarticulate andrepresentwhattheyknow,0forreflectingonwhattheyhavelearnedandhowtheycameto knowit
oforsupportinglearners'internalnegotiations andmeaningmaking
oforconstructingpersonalrepresentationsof meaning
oforsupportingmindfulthinking
HowTechnologiesFosterThinking
Whydotheseusesoftechnologyfoster meaningfullearning?Itisbecausethey
requirethatstudents'thinkandreason.Inthisbook,wearguethatstudentsdonot
learnfromteachersor'fromtechnologies.Rather, studentslearnfromthinking­
thinkingaboutwhattheyare doingorwhattheydid, thinkingaboutwhatthey
believe,
thinkingaboutwhatothershavedoneandbelIeve,thinkingaboutthe
thinkingprocessestheyuse-justthinkingandreasoning.Thinkingmediates
learning.Learningresultsfrom,thinking.Whatkindsofthinkingarefostered
whenlearning
withtechnologies?
CausalCausalreasoningis oneofthemostbasicandimportantcognitive
processesthat
underpinallhigher-orderactivities,suchasproblemsolving. Hume
calledcausalitythe"cementoftheuniverse"(Hume,1739/2000).Reasoningfroma
descriptionofaconditionorsetofconditionsorstatesof
aneventtothepossible
effect(s)that
mayresultfromthosestatesiscalled prediction.Abaseballpitcherpre­
dictswherethe
b,allwillgobytheforcesthatheorsheapplies whenpitchingtheball.
Whenanoutcomeorstateexistsfor whichthecausalagent isunknown,then aninfer­
enceisrequired.Thatis,reasoningbackwardfromeffecttocauserequirestheprocess
ofinference.A
primaryfunctionofinferencesisdiagnosis.Forexample, basedon
symptoms,historicalfactors, andtestresultsofpatients whoarethoughttobeabnor­
mal,aphysicianattemptstoinferthecause(s)ofthatillnessstate.
Thinkllgcausallyis
alsorequiredform'akingexplanations.Explaining howthingsworkrequireslearner
toidentifyallthecausalconnections amongthethingsbeingexplained.
Causalthinkingisreally morecomplexthanlearnersunderstand.Inorderto
beableto understandandapplycausalrelationships,learnersmustbeableto
quantifyattributesofcausalrelationships(direction,strength,probability,and
duration)aswellas beabletoexplainthe underlyingmechanismsdescribingthe

9. WhatIsMeaningfulLearning? 9
relationship(Jonassen &Ionas,2007). Whydoesaforceappliedtoaballcauseitto
moveincertaindirection?
AnalogicalIfyoudistillcognitivepsychology.intoasingleprinciple,it would
betouseanalogiestoconvey andunderstandnewideas.Thatis, understandinga
newideaisbestaccomplishedbycomparingandcontrastingitto anideathatis
alreadyunderstood.Inananalogy,the propertiesorattributesofoneidea(the
analogue)aremappedortransferredto.another(thesourceortarget).Single
analogiesarealso
knownassynonymsormetaphors.Onewordconveysattrib­
utestotheother,often usingtheword"like"or"as"asaconnector.Following
HurricaneKatrina
in2005,NewOrleanswassaidtobe inundatedwitha"toxic
gumbo."Gumboisacomplex NewOrleans-stylesoupthatcontainsavarietyof
ingredients.The
watersthatsurroundedNewOrleanscontainedacomplex
vari-
etyoftoxicsubstances-thusmetaphorasanalogy. -
Peoplemostcommonly.thinkofsyllogismasanalQgies.A syllogismisa
four-partanalogy.Forexample,loveistohateaspeaceisto --'-.Theanalogy
makessenseonlyifthestructuralcharacteristicsof thefirstanalogycanbe
appliedtothesecond.
Inusingtechnologiestorepresenttheir' understanding,studentsconsistently
are
requiredtoengage
inthecomparison-contrastreasoningrequiredtostruc­
turally
maptheattributesofone ormoreideatoothers,thatis,to drawananalogy.
ExpressiveUsingtechnologiesastoolstolearn withentailslearnersrepresenting
whattheyknow,thatis,teachingthecomputer. Todoso,learnersmustexpress
whattheyknow.Usingdifferenttoolsrequireslearnerstoexpress whattheyknow
indifferentways.Chapter4describes howtechnologiescanbeusedtohelplearners
expressthemselves
inwriting.Chapter5illustrates howlearnerscanexpressthem­
selvesusingavarietyoftools,suchasdatabases,spreadsheets,
andexpertsystems,
eachtoolrequiringdifferentformsofexpression.Chapters6
and7showhowtech­
nologiescan
supportverbalexpression,whilechapter9focuses onvisualexpres­
sions.Contrastthesevarietiesofexpressionsto
thoserequiredbystate-mandated
tests,wherestudents'onlyformofexpressionsistheselectionofanswer
a,b,c,ord.
Experiential.;Experiencesresult inthemostmeaningful andresistantmemories.
Wecanrecallwithclarityexperiences thatwehavehadmanyyearsbefore.The
primarymediumforexpressingexperiencesisthestory.Storiesaretheoldest and
mostnaturalformofsensemaking.Storiesare the"means[by]whichhuman
beingsgivemeaningtotheirexperienceoftemporalityandpersonalactions"
(Polkinghorne,1988,p.11). Cultureshavemaintainedtheirexistencethrough
differenttypesofstories,includingmyths,
(airytales,andhistories.Humans
appeartohaveaninnateability andpredispositiontoorganize.andrepresenttheir
experiences
intheformofstories.Learning withtechnologiesengagesstoriesina
coupleways.First,theexperiencesthat
studentshavewhileusingtechnologiesto
representtheir
understandingaremeaningfulandmemorable.Second, students
mayseekoutstoriesandusetechnologiestoconveythem(seechapters5 and9).

10. 10
Conclusion
Chapter1
ProblemSolving Usingtechnologiestoexpress andconveylearnerknowledge
allentaildifferent
kindsofproblemssolving.Learning withtechnologiesrequires
thatstudentsmakemyriaddecisionswhileconstructingtheirrepresentations.
Deciding
whatinformationtoinclude andexclude,howtostructuretheinformation,
andwhatformit shouldtaReareallcomplexdecision-makingprocesses.Students
also
engageinalotof
design·problemsolvingwhileconstructingtheirinterpreta­
tions.Theyalso
mustsolverule-usingproblems inhowtousesoftware.Whenlearn­
ersaresolvingproblems,theyarethinkingdeeply
ahdareengagedinmeaningful
learning.
Whattheylearnwhiledoingsowillbesomuchbetterunderstoodand
rememberedthancontinuouslypreparingtoanswermultiple-choicetestquestions.
Anunderlyingassumptionofthisbookisthatthemostproductiveandmeaning­
ful
usesoftechnologywill notoccuriftechnologiesare usedintraditionalways­
asdeliveryvehiclesforinstructionallessons.Technology cannotteachstudents.
Rather,learnersteachthetechnologies.Meaningfullearningwill'resultwhentech­
nologies
engagelearnersinthefollowing:.
•
Knowledgeconstruction,notreproduction
•Conversation,notreception
•Articulation,
notrepetition
•Collaboration,
notcornpetition
•Reflection,notprescription
Wearguethattechnologiescansupportmeaningfullearningwhenstudentslearn
withthetechnology,notfromit. Whenstudentsusetechnologiesto investigate
(chapter2),explore(chapter3), write(chapter4), buildmodels(chapter5), build
communities.(chapter6),communicatewithothers(chapter7), design(chapter8),
andvisualize(chapter9), thentheyare engagedindeeperlevelsof thinkingand
reasoning,includingcausal,analogical,expressive,experiential,andproblem
solving.Technologiesare lousyteachers,buttheycanbepowerfultoolsto think
with.Thatisthethemethatwedescribeintheremainderofthisbook.
.}.-
:,"~:"LJ•r'
.'..>•.~
.,~ :~.':.":.,::'.~':."','.
Ifyouwouldlike'toreflect ontheideasthat~epresent~d inthischapter,consider
yourresponsesto thefollowingquestions.
1.Iflearnerscannotknowwhattheteacherknowsbecausetheydonotshare
acommonknowledgeandexperiencebase,howcanwebecertainthat
studentslearnimportantthings?Forinstance,ifyouwanttoteach

11. WhatIsMeaningFulLearning? 11
studentsaboutthedangersofcertainchemicalreactionsillthelab,how
doweensurethatlearnersknowandunderstandthoseimportant
lessons?
2.Whatisyourtheoryoflearning?From yourperspective,howdopeople
learn?
What
~retheimportantprocesses?
3.Isitpossibletolearn(constructpersonalmeaning)withoutengaging
insomeactivity;thatis,isitpossibleto learnsimplybythinkingabout
something?Whatareyouthinkingabout?Canyouthinkofan
example?
4.Whenlearnersconstruct knowledge,whataretheybuilding? Howisit
possibletoobservethefruitsoftheirlabor,
thatis,theknowledgethey
construct?
5.
Thinkbackto yourchildhood.Whatcanyourememberfromyourearly
childhood?Wheredidyourremembranceoccur?Whatmeaningdidit
haveatthetime?Howhasthatmeaningchangedovertime?
6.Thinkaboutarecentcontroversialtopicthatyouhaveheardorread
about.Whataredifferentsidesarguingabout?Whatdotheybelieve?
Whatassumptionsdotheymakeaboutwhatiscausingthecontroversy?
Where
didthosebeliefscomefrom?
7.Radicalconstructivists arguethatrealityexists onlyinthemindofthe
knower.
Ifthatistrue,isthereaphysical worldthatwelivein?Proveit.
8.Someeducatorsarguethatwelearnmuchmorefromourfailuresthan
from
oursuccesses.Why?Theybelieve thatweshouldputstudentsinsit­
uations
wheretheirhypothesesorpredictionsfail. Canyouthinkofasit­
uationinwhichyoulearnedalotfromamistake?
9.Recallthelastdifficult problemthatyouhadtosolve.Didyousolveit
alone,
ordidyousolicitthehelpofothers? Whatdidyoulearnfromsolv­
ingthatproblem?Canthatlearningbeusedagain?
10.
Canyoulearntocookmerelyfromwatchingcookingshowsontelevi­
sion?
Whatmeaningdoyoumakefromtheexperiencesthat youobserve?
Willtheexperience
youhavewhenyouprepareadishbethesameasthat
ofthetelevisionchef?
Howwillitbedifferent?
11.Technologyistheapplicationofscientificknowledge,accordingto many
definitions.Canyouthinkofateachingtechnology(replicable, proven
teachingprocess)thatdoes notinvolvemachines?
12.Canyoucalculatetheexactsquarerootof2,570withoutacalculator?
Doesthecalculatormake
yousmarter?Isthecalculatorintelligent?
13.
Describethedifferenceinthinkingprocessesengagedbyashort­
answerversusamultiple-choicetestquestion.Aretheydifferent?
Are
theyassessingknowledge?Isthatknowledgemeaningful?Whyor
whynot?
14.
Canyouthinkof anactivitythat makesyoudumber,notsmarter?Doyou
notlearnanythingfromthatactivity?
15.
Haveyoueverproducedyourownvideo,movie,slideshow, orcomputer
program?Howdiditmakeyouthink?Howdiditmakeyoufeel?

12. 12
Referenc~s
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Clark,
R.(1983).Merevehicles. ReviewofEducational
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Hadley,M.,
&Sheingold,K.(1993).Comrnonalities
anddistinctivepatterns
inteacherinteraction of
computers.AmericanJournalofEdilcation,101(3),
261-315.
Hume,D.(1739/2000).Atreatiseofhumannature.
Oxford,UK:OxfordUniversityPress.
Jonassen,D.H.(2000). Computersasmindtoolsin
schools:Engagingcriticalthinking.. Columbus,
OH:Merrill/PrenticeHall.
Chapter
1
Jonassen,D.H.,&Ionas,1.G.(2007).Designingeffec­
tive
supportsforcausalreasoning.Educational
Technology:ResearchandDevelopment,55.
Polkinghorne,D.(1988).Narrativeknowing andthe
humansciences.Albany:StateUniversity ofNew
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Scardamalia,M.&Bereiter,C.(1994).Computer
supportforknowledgebuildingcommunities.
JournaloftheLearningSciences,3(3),265-283.
Schank,
R.C.(1994).Goal-basedscenarios. InR.C.
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anddecisionmaking:Psycho-logic
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