How to Learn (Almost) Anything

Officially MAS 712: Technological Tools for Learning
Spring 2001: Thursdays, 1:00-3:00pm, Room E15-054 (MIT Media Lab)

Instructors:
Bakhtiar Mikhak (mikhak@media.mit.edu)
Mitchel Resnick (mres@media.mit.edu)

Teaching Assistant:
Casey Smith (csmith@media.mit.edu)

Course administrator:
Carolyn Stoeber (stoeber@media.mit.edu)
E15-020A, 253-0330

TENTATIVE SCHEDULE

February 8: Introduction and Overview

• In-class activity:
  • Kinetic sculpture workshop, using cricket technology
• Readings:
  • The PIE Network: Promoting Science Inquiry and Engineering through Playful Invention and Exploration with New Digital Technologies. Proposal to the National Science Foundation, 2000.
  • Resnick, M., Berg, R., and Eisenberg, M. (2000). Beyond Black Boxes: Bringing Transparency and Aesthetics Back to Scientific Investigation. Journal of the Learning Sciences, vol. 9, no. 1, pp. 7-30.

February 22: Learning from one another

• Assignment:
• Teach/learn something to/from another student in the class
• Readings:
• Gardner, H. (1989). The Unschooled Mind: How Children Think & How Schools Should Teach, chapters 6, 10, 11 (pages 200-210).

March 1: Apprenticeship learning

• Assignment:
• Take a several-hour class or workshop to learn something new
• Readings:
• Brown, J.S., Collins, A., and Duguid, P. (1989). Situated cognition and the culture of learning.Educational Researcher, vol. 18, no. 1, pp. 32-42.

March 8: Powerful ideas and fluency

• Assignment:
  • Paper on “What can I learn in 3 hours”
• Readings:
  • Papert, S. (1991). What’s the big idea: Towards a pedagogy of idea power. IBM Systems Journal, vol. 39, no. 3-4.

March 15: Learning “on your own”

• Readings:
  • Selected readings from the Growing Without Schooling newsletter.
  • Holt, J. (1990). Learning All the Time. Perseus Press.

March 22: Choosing your tools (and fluency with tools)

• Readings:
  • Martin, F. (1995). The Art of LEGO Design. The Robotics Practitioner: The Journal for Robot Builders, vol. 1, no. 2.
  • Resnick, M., Bruckman, A., and Martin, F. (1996). Pianos Not Stereos: Creating Computational Construction Kits. Interactions, vol. 3, no. 6, pp. 64-71.
  • Martin, F., Mikhak, B., and Silverman, B. (2001). MetaCricket: A designer’s kit for making computational devices. IBM Systems Journal, vol. 39, no. 3-4.

March 29: Spring vacation

April 5: Documenting and evaluating activities

• Readings:
  • Selected reading from a collection of books on the Reggio Emilia approach:
    • Katz, L.G. and Cesarone, B., eds. (1994). Reflections on the Reggio Emilia Approach.
    • Ceppi, G., Zini, M. eds. (1998). Children, Spaces, Relations: Metaproject for an environment for young children.
    • Reggio Emilia teachers and other researchers. (1995). The Fountains: The unheard voice of children.
    • Reggio Emilia teachers and other Researchers. (1997). The hundred Languages of Children.
  • Duckworth, E. (1972). The Having of Wonderful Ideas. Harvard Educational Review, vol. 42, no. 2, pp. 217-231.

April 12: Diane Willow: Learning as Space, Place and Environment

• Selected readings available in the Cube:
  • Tuan, Yi-Fu. Chapter 9 ofTopophilia; Environment and Topophilia,
  • Orr, David W. Chapter 8 of Ecological Literacy ; Place and Pedagogy.
  • Hiss, Tony. Chapter 2 of The Experience of Place; Connectedness.

• Readings online:
  • Chawla, Louise. Ecstatic Places
  • Vecchi, Vea. What kind of space for living well in school

April 19: Design vs. craft

• Roundtable discussion:
  • Guests: John Maeda, Stu Kestenbaum, Arthur Gansen
• Readings:
  • TBA.

    NOTE: Online workshop description/materials is due on Monday, April 23

April 26: Discussion of plans for first-round workshops

May 3: Reports on first-round workshops

May 10 (3 hours): Reports on second-round workshops

NOTE: Class extended by an hour

May 12 (Saturday): workshops for one another

NOTE: Special session

May 17: final project reports due

• As a part of your report, set up a web site which includes:
  • Online materials to help others run the workshop
  • Your reflections on:
    • what workshop participants learned
    • what you learned
    • ways to extend the workshop experience

May 19 (Saturday): workshops for Media Lab

NOTE: Special session