ABSTRACT
In this chapter we examine what we mean by ‘learning’, arguing that for learning to be effective it needs to involve the active participation of the learner. We specify what our understanding of the nature of learning implies for the way we should view teaching. We also consider the implications of our conception of effective teaching for the types of components that need to be built into an electronic learning environment if it is to support the learner adequately
In the traditional model of the classroom, the teacher is the focus, standing in front of a group of students and presenting information. What the teacher does in these situations is sometimes described as ‘communicate’ knowledge. However, this explanation betrays a misunderstanding of what is actually taking place. Knowledge, skills and behaviours cannot simply be transmitted from teacher to student. Knowledge, in the sense of ‘that which a person knows’, is not able simply to be absorbed. Nor are skills or the propensity to act in certain ways. What a teacher transmits is information. When learners receive that information they construct knowledge from it.
