Ld. Edwards et al., GIRLS TEACH THEMSELVES, AND BOYS TOO - PEER LEARNING IN A COMPUTER-BASED DESIGN AND CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY, Computers and education, 29(1), 1997, pp. 33-48
Citations number
43
Categorie Soggetti
Education & Educational Research","Computer Sciences, Special Topics","Computer Science Interdisciplinary Applications
In this study, we investigated the use of female students as peer expe
rts in a workshop introducing an interactive, computer-based learning
environment called LEGO/Logo. In LEGO/Logo, children design, construct
and program computer-controllable machines using specialized parts su
ch as motors, sound elements, and sensors. The eighty-five students wh
o participated in the study attended 6th grade (age 12) at a middle-cl
ass elementary school in the United States. The LEGO/Logo workshops we
re approximately 15 hours each, and the students worked primarily in p
airs or groups of three. The findings indicate that the students were
successful in building a wide range of LEGO/Logo machines, from simple
to complex models, and that the peer teachers were utilized as expert
s by the other students and benefited from this experience. Certain ge
nder-related differences were observed in the students' interactions a
nd in working with the LEGO/Logo system. (C) 1997 Elsevier Science Ltd
.