2006 Media Releases
Monday, 21 August 2006
How not to use computers to teach kids
Computers in teaching are used in many ways – from arithmetic drill to creative multimedia presentations. So why would a leading US computer scientist and educator think that educational computing is mostly bad?
This controversial question will be answered tonight at a public lecture on La Trobe University’s main Melbourne campus at Bundoora.
Dr Brian Harvey from the University of California at Berkeley says the central problem is that the desire for ‘computer literacy’ as an end in itself works against the mainstream curriculum from which computer assignments are drawn.
Dr Harvey teaches many computer science subjects including social implications of computing at the University of California at Berkeley.
His major interest is the use of computers in pre-college education at Berkeley. He is the developer of Berkeley Logo, a freeware implementation of the programming language for children.
He is the author of Computer-Science Logo Style, intended for teenagers, and Simply-Scheme, a beginning text for university students.
The lecture, presented by the La Trobe University School of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences, is free and open to the public.
Time: 6.00 pm Monday 21 August 2006,
Venue: Western Lecture Theatre 3, Health Sciences Complex, La Trobe University Bundoora Campus, Melway Map 573, C5 - use Car Park One.
For further information:
Associate Professor Samar Singh, Tel: 9479 2598 or Email: s.singh@latrobe.edu.au