Knowledge-Building in Electronic Environments. Konrad Glogowski (http://www.teachandlearn.ca/blog) Note: This document was created in 2002. Please keep in mind that some of the external links may no longer work.

Introduction:

This section argues that the world which surrounds us today has been redefined by the electronic media. Consequently, as educators we need to ensure that our students do not get lost in this electronic maze of information and that they have the right skills to navigate through it. At the same time, we need to keep in mind that when inundated by vast amounts of information, many individuals lose their sense of self. Consequently, there emerges a need for constructivist and holistic learning communities that encourage active engagement and personal inquiry. The concept of knowledge-building is based on the belief that education is not about passive reception of carefully chosen and compartmentalized ideas. It sees education as a personal journey, a personal process of meaning-making. Knowledge-building and Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning foster creative, personal, and inquisitive thinking in the modern world of networks and correspondences. They view students as constructors, discoverers and transformers of knowledge.

Before you proceed ...

Every page in this section contains links to other pages that will provide you with additional information on a given concept or offer examples. You are free to either click or ignore these links. While some believe that such a hypertextual approach disrupts the narrative flow of the article, the notion of knowledge-building in electronic environments is based on the assumption that the online environment is multi-textual and multi-centred. Since linearity disappears, we are forced to create our own paths. This document invites you to become your own path maker and chart your own course through the web that I have devised. By the time you finish reading (and clicking) this article, you will be surrounded by a variety of windows, each one offering new information, a different perspective, an enriched view. You will have to decide how many you are willing to read and will have to sift through the information I have provided. This will involve personal choices and it will be (I hope) an interactive experience.

There is no predefined order in which this section should be explored. Consequently, its contents, represented below, are not numbered. You should feel free to explore them in any order you wish. The process of knowledge-building in an electronic environment begins with you and the choices you make.