ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses a central but often overlooked aspect of knowledge construction in the computer age: the role of individual differences in computer learning. We show that three types of individual differences—in computer activities, students, and teachers—are crucial for understanding computer learning. The first type involves the nature of the material with which the student is engaged. We must attempt to understand “individual differences” among computer activities. What are the different uses to which the computer (that is, the computer along with the software driving it) can be put? The second type of individual difference involves the student using the computer. What are the different ways in which individuals use a piece of software? Why are some students, but not others, “liberated” by different computer activities? The third type of individual difference involves the nature of the social environment in which computer activities are embedded. How do teachers differ in their approaches to computer education?
