I am new to computers but I have taught social sciences at the University
of Alberta and Douglas College here in B.C.I liked the expression "using
symbols and words to get a computer to do something cool."I am working on
a text-only 286.As I tap on the keyboard I am using the symbols (like #),
letters and words to "do something cool".I notice that everything I do is
a sequence of buttons pressed.If I were using a mouse I guess it would be
a sequence of mouse clicks.In either case I need to know the stimulus or
cue which tells me what response or sequence of responses to make at a
given time or within a time frame.My question is this:"How far could we
go by telling students just the 'command sequence' necessary for a
particular objective?" Do you want to create a home page?This is your
response sequence.Do you want to send out e-mail?This is your response
sequence.Do you want to use an index or search engine?This is your
response sequence.
This is not satisfactory to the person who likes to teach theory.But
it is the fastest and easiest way for the layman to start using the
computer so that he will get results.It is like telling the user
(student) which buttons to press to use the telephone, then teaching the
theories of electronics, mechanics etc. later as required.Perhaps the
clever student would start developing some plausible theories on the
internal working of the computer from this simple Stimulus-Response
Sequence teaching model.If it is applied to the extreme will it allow the
teaching of bona fide programming? I don't know.Maybe those who are
teachers of programming can say.It is partly a matter of how you define
programming is it not?Right now I would hazard a guess that you could
teach any programming using this model if it is carried far enough.
I am approaching this first as a student with only one year and about
800 hours logged on the Internet.The half dozen short courses I have
taken were abyssmal in terms of 'instructional technology'.Sometimes I
teach Internet basics (very basic) to people who want to use e-mail and
look up Web sites on the public access computers around Vancouver.I say
to them "Look, I will teach you in 1/2-1 hour, easily and painlessly what
it took me 10 hours to learn,with difficulty and frustration."And I keep
my promise.As a teacher I wonder how far this approach (S-R Sequence)
could go? What do you folks think?
Sincerely-Dr. Franklin Wayne Poley.
fwp@vcn.bc.ca