We encourage contributions from teachers, researchers and software designers who would like to illustrate how technology can aid in the constructionist approach to learning, thinking and education.

Papers can be case-based or theoretical. Presentations are generally twenty minutes in length and we will have both plenary sessions as well as smaller groupings.

We are always eager to hear about new uses and extensions to the Logo computer language but we are also eager to hear from those using other languages and technologies.

We hope to mix constructionists from a variety of disciplines: mathematics, social and physical sciences with the arts and humanities.

Teachers of younger students are especially welcome and are encouraged to actively participate and to show examples of their students’ work.

We have heard from people interested in the following areas. Please suggest others! (info@constructionism2010.org)

• New constructionist computer languages • New versions of Logo •  Robotics • Multi agent modelling applications in the social sciences • Multi agent modelling applications in mathematics and science education • Art and design education • Music education, music listening • Dance education: dance notation as tools of thought • Constructionist psychology: the work of George Kelly • Constructionist applications of Mathematica • Constructionist applications of APL: Ken Iverson vs. Seymour Papert • Teaching statistics from a constructionist point of view • What’s the difference between constructionism and constructivism? • Constructionism and Social Networking • Dewey, Montessori, and Papert • Learning by constructing • Piaget and Papert • Constructionist research methods & tools • Learning by debugging and iteration • Objects-to-think-with and Knowledge Representations • Constructionism and Global Learning • What's next? • The legacy

We particularly encourage teachers and students to present posters based on: work in progress • classroom experiences • constructionist ideas.

• Robotics • NetLogo • Scratch • Technology for students with special needs • Repertory Grid methods of Personal Construct Psychology

We strongly encourage you to keep true to the sense and purpose of the conference by highlighting the constructionist features of your work. To aid in your planning and preparation, here is a brief summary of the constructionist idea:

• Students need disciplined guidance along the way to acquiring new knowledge and skills.

• They also need opportunities to actively explore and experiment with new concepts and materials on their own, to test and extend their understanding by designing and constructing sharable artifacts. That observation is the heart and soul of the constructionist perspective.

• Constructionism focuses on making the creation and sharing of knowledge a primary goal, not only for education, but also for research and practice at professional levels in all fields.

As expressed succinctly by one of our conferees: "I don't see any hard edges between creating, sharing, consuming and learning. I want a system that allows people to shift effortlessly between doing these things."

Expected outcomes: 

•  An assessment of the strengths and weaknesses of constructionism as you have seen and practiced it.

•  A renewed sense of purpose concerning constructionist approaches and their relevance to learning in the 21st century.