I am not surprised that the use of computers (and this probably also
includes the use of the Internet) for instructional purposes has not been
the magic key that some were hoping it would be. Too much of what we do
with computers, the Internet and education is to use computers as if they
are print media. It has only recently been that more persons are using the
Internet in an interactive way such as would be difficult to do with
books.
Letting students work with "what-if" scenarios, running simulations in
which parameters can be changed, and such like are things that cannot be
done with print media very easily. However computers are a natural medium
for this. And the Internet becomes a universal delivery route that is
independent of the operating system.
For an example, as I was looking for some physics simulations, I found
Jefferson Lab's "Tour of the Atom." It looks good, loads fast, but is
essentially a print media presentation done on the Internet.
What we need are more interactive web pages that involve the viewer in the
learning process. Books are much more portable than computers. (No one
really can curl up on the sofa with their computer!) So let books do what
books do best. And let's begin to use computers and the Internet for what
they do best.
Richard
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Dr. Richard L. Bowman
Chair, Dept. of Physics e-mail: rbowman@bridgewater.edu
(and Dir. of Academic Computing) phone: 540-828-5441
Bridgewater College FAX: 540-828-5479
Bridgewater, VA 22812 http://www.bridgewater.edu/~rbowman/
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