CS547 Human-Computer Interaction Seminar (Seminar on People, Computers, and Design)
Fridays 12:50-2:05 · Gates B01 · Open to the public
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February 16, 2001
I'll discuss why kindergarten is one of the few success stories
of our educational system -- and how new technologies can help
us extend the successful "kindergarten approach" to
learners of all ages. I will describe some of the "computational
construction kits" that we have developed at the MIT Media
Lab, and discuss how these kits (like the blocks and fingerpaint
of kindergarten) can expand the range of what people can design
and create -- and what they learn in the process. I will also
discuss some new learning contexts (such as Computer Clubhouses)
where we are trying out our ideas.
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Mitchel Resnick,
associate professor at the MIT
Media Laboratory, develops new technological tools and toys
in an effort to help people (particularly children) learn new
things in new ways. Resnick led the development of the ideas
and technologies underlying the LEGO Mindstorms robotics construction
kit. He has also led the development of several projects (including
StarLogo software and the Virtual Fishtank museum exhibit) designed
to help people learn about complex systems and emergent phenomena.
He co-founded the Computer Clubhouse, a network of after-school
learning centers for youth from under-served communities. Resnick
earned a BA in physics at Princeton University (1978), and MS
and PhD degrees in computer science at MIT (1988, 1992). He worked
for five years as a science/technology journalist for Business
Week magazine, and he has consulted widely on the uses of computers
in education. Resnick was awarded a National Science Foundation
Young Investigator Award in 1993. He is author of the book Turtles,
Termites, and Traffic Jams, published by MIT Press in 1994.
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