Over the last five years, people have heard a great deal about something called the Knowledge Society. The term "knowledge" is appearing in places they would not have expected to see it a decade or so ago. The media is full of references to the knowledge economy and the knowledge revolution; business discussions now routinely talk about knowledge…

Presents an alternative perspective that conceives of graphing as observable practices employed to achieve specific goals rather than as knowledge represented in students' minds. Highlights the nature of graphs as semiotic objects, rhetorical devices, and conscription devices. Illustrates the plausibility and fruitfulness of the new perspective in…

Raises a number of questions about knowledge generation from mathematics education and the nature of pedagogical information in the field. Considers two main activities within the realm of mathematics education: (1) pursuing investigations to improve instruction and (2) redefining the boundaries of mathematics as a subject. (DDR)

Suggests that the development of good chemistry teaching and the pursuit of research have essentially the same structure. Similarities include the need for a clear focus, efficiency in time and effort, and a direction that is more often right than wrong. (DDR)

Hypertext can be characterized as an electronic system that works by association rather than indexing, and furnishes information in a dynamic, nonsequential manner that does not limit the content by structure or organization. A more technical definition specifies that hypertext is a technique for organizing information in a complex manner that…

Argues that scientific knowledge in school is a social construct in which curriculum proposals are simply points of departure that are transformed by the social interaction that takes place within the classroom. Considers discourse as playing an important role in knowledge construction. Contains 31 references. (DDR)

Contributes to a reflection on the possibilities and the limits of a non-naive use of the history of mathematics for educational purposes. Discusses a problem related to the hypotheses that make it possible to confront past and modern conceptual developments. Contains 45 references. (DDR)

Describes six divergent forms of constructivism in providing an overview of constructivist theory. Suggests a scheme for characterizing constructivist writing on the basis of its relative emphasis on personal versus social construction of knowledge, and objectivist versus relativist views of the nature of science. Contains 31 references. (DDR)

Argues that some forms of constructivism propose an epistemological idealism with a concomitant relativism, while other forms are explicitly opposed to such positions. Explains that all forms of constructivism are often presented as being relativistic. Contains 31 references. (DDR)

Constructs the philosophical background and underpinnings of the Science Education Portfolio Instruction and Assessment (SEPIA) project. Explains that students must develop skills in order to participate in epistemic interchanges. They must also be provided opportunities and materials to develop those skills. Contains 29 references. (DDR)

Distinguishes between psychological constructivist and social constructivist groups. Explains the reasons for the growing acrimony in debates between the two groups. Discusses social constructivist accounts of the causes of belief in science. Contains 43 references. (DDR)

Argues that constructivist science education works with an unsatisfactory account of knowledge which affects both its account of the nature of science and of science education. Includes a brief survey of realism and anti-realism in science. Contains 42 references. (DDR)

Discusses and criticizes a number of constructivist positions in education that are based on distinctions between the metaphors of "finding" versus "making" for the obtaining of new knowledge. Discusses what is of value in constructivism and what is ill-founded baggage. Contains 25 references. (DDR)

Discusses the notion that scientific knowledge is not dependable and that knowledge is no longer valued as a part of science. Points out that this has led to approaches that aim to teach scientific methods or problem-solving skills rather than scientific knowledge. Contains 19 references. (DDR)

Argues that there are many kinds of understanding and many ways to reach these different understandings. Suggests that this is the reason why articulating general rules that can consistently lead to understanding is difficult. Discusses the relationship between brain structure and learning. (DDR)