Mindstorms: Children, Computers, and Powerful Ideas Part II

More on Seymour Papert's Mindstorms: Children, Computers, and Powerful Ideas:

It's Okay to Make Mistakes. In Fact, We Encourage it:

Through his research on computers and education, Papert stresses that a child will have difficulty learning if they do not assimilate newly acquired knowledge to previous knowledge. Through his coding program, LOGO, “children learn to use computers in a masterful way, and that learning to use computers can change the way they learn everything else.” (pg. 8) The reader learns just how coding “transforms” learning by allowing children to take a more self-directed, active part of their learning. The biggest part of this is making mistakes and “debugging,” a process where the learner finds and fixes their errors on their own. Debugging is an important part of the learning process and “is the essence of intellectual activity.” (pg. xiii) Papert believes that, “people seldom get anything right on the first try.” (pg. xiii) It’s this beliefs that permits Papert to present a compelling argument as to why students need opportunities to use computers and code.

Math Can Be FUN!:

One of the biggest ideas Papert writes about is how students of math learn to be “mathophobias” early in their educational careers. This “phobia” of math, “is often the first step of an invasive intellectual process that leads us all the define as… “mathematical” or “not mathematical” (pg. 8) thus setting the tone for children’s relationship with learning math. Papert found that when children could make connections with math concepts and their previous knowledge of body movement and how it works, they could apply this knowledge to learning geometry (what he calls Turtle geometry). Papert writes that, “Turtle geometry, a kind of geometry that is easily learnable and an effective carrier of very general mathematical ideas.” (pg. 63) Turtle geometry is learnable because it is syntonic learning; it’s in harmony with the student’s learning environment.

My Conclusion:

Mindstorms presents a compelling argument that “new knowledge often contradicts the old, and effective learning requires strategies to deal with such conflict.” (pg. 121) It’s these effective learning strategies such as coding, debugging, and project-based learning that allow students to take control of their learning through use of computers and coding to engage them in activities that are meaningful in their real world. I must agree with Papert on his findings because as an educator myself, I have seen first-hand how effective project-based learning can be for students. When given opportunities to use real-world scenarios, students are better able to assimilate their learning. Also, I have used the LOGO program myself. As Perpert writes, I too, found the process of writing the code and debugging invaluable to my learning. Mindstorms is a book that was well before it’s time, and what Papert writes is as relevant today as it was in 1980 when it was first published.