first brief remarks on Carol Lee's article

From: Luiz Carlos Baptista (lucabaptista@sapo.pt)
Date: Thu Nov 06 2003 - 08:54:07 PST


Hi all,

My first (small) contribution to the debate about Carol Lee's article has to
do with the "neutrality" of CBN, a topic raised by Mike Cole in a previous
message.

As far as I understand, the article makes the case that computer-based tools
are not culturally "neutral" in terms of *content*. On the other hand, it
seems to me that the rationale behind CBN and other tools is the idea of a
"neutrality" of *procedures*, allowing them to be adaptable to different
backgrounds, thanks to their flexibility.

But is this so? Or wouldn't it be the case that computer-based tools involve
constraints by their very nature as media, although different from those
related to traditional classroom teaching? These constraints could be
understood as "neutral" only in the sense that their overall effects are
felt through all human groups - but even here, wouldn't different groups be
differently affected?

These are my questions for now. Please correct me if I misunderstood the
article or missed its point.

Luiz Carlos Baptista
lucabaptista@sapo.pt
lucabaptista@hotmail.com



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