Case Study: Supporting the Structuring of Personal Knowledge with Computers

Abstract

One result of the diffusion of new technologies is the demand for greater flexibility on the part of individuals when confronted with certain problems, tasks and situations. In this context, characterized by constant renewal, schools are being asked to play an increasingly complex role in society and in particular to provide an educational approach, which is responsive to changes in demand and which most importantly is abreast of the times.

It is evident that schools cannot be expected to predict future needs and consequently equip students today with the ‘cultural baggage’ that they will need tomorrow. However, they can be asked to provide students with the necessary ‘mental tools’ to cope with probable situations in the future.

It becomes increasingly important therefore that teachers guide students in discovering the most effective ways in which they can increase their cultural knowledge autonomously, but at the same time afford them enough freedom to actually do it (Tall, 1988). In other words, students need to be given the opportunity to take an active role in the learning process, and not be restricted to the passive regurgitation of information provided by teachers and the outside world in general. At school, students should become used to organizing information they receive in an established network of concepts, thereby taking an active part in the process of building their own knowledge.