Computers in the Classroom, 2d ed. by Henry S. Kepner,Review by: Carl WehnerThe Arithmetic Teacher, Vol. 34, No. 9 (May 1987), p. 53Published by: National Council of Teachers of MathematicsStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/41194241 .

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Computers in the Classroom, 2d ed., edited by Henry S. Kepner, Jr. 1986, 175 pp., $10.95 paper. ISBN 0-8106-1829-X. NEA Professional Library, P.O. Box 509, West Ha- ven, CT 06516.

This book is divided into three parts: "Educa- tional Uses of Computers," "Student Use of Computers," and "The Computer in the Cur- riculum." The latter part is the most extensive and includes chapters dealing with business; language arts, composition, and reading; fine arts; mathematics; and science and social sci- ence.

In the words of the editor, "Each reader can use this book as a starting point or an update of instructional computing in given fields." Two chapters of particular interest to readers of the Arithmetic Teacher are "Issues Regarding Computers in the Schools" and "The Com- puter in Mathematics Instruction, K-8."

The book gives a good overview of the edu- cational uses of the computer, as well as of more detailed uses in the various subject matter areas. In many of these chapters, both the pros and cons regarding several uses of the computer in the classroom are discussed. The whole book would be useful to curriculum or computer coordinators, whereas selected chapters would be useful to classroom teachers. Some areas more appropriate to secondary teachers than to elementary teachers are covered.

Several topics give the reader "food for thought." Two such areas are keyboarding and equity of computer access. Schools that are using the computer extensively with elementary school students need to decide when, how, and by whom to provide keyboarding instruction. I am concerned that students not develop habits that must be broken or replaced by other habits later.

One criticism of the book is that although it gives a good overview in many areas, it seems to lack adequate depth in many areas also. - Carl Wehner, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA 50614.

Young Children Reinvent Arith- metic: Implications of Piaget's The- ory, Constance Kazuko Kamii. 1985, 267 pp., $18.95 paper. ISBN 0-8077-2707-5. Teachers College Press, Columbia University, 1234 Am- sterdam Ave., New York, NY 10027.

In Young Children Reinvent Arithmetic, a mix of theory and practice based on Piaget's theo- ries, the author proposes that traditional in- struction in arithmetic concepts in the first grade should be replaced by group games and situations in daily living. Potential audiences that will find this content of interest are teach- ers of young children, administrators, curricu- lum specialists, course e valuators, college pro- fessors, and parents. In the beginning of the book, a philosophical and theoretical rationale for the proposed changes is offered. Essential points of Piaget's theory are explained and discussed; the general goals of education are examined; and the specific goals currently ac- cepted in first-grade mathematics are scruti- nized in light of the proposed goals. The third and fourth parts of the book were partly written by a classroom teacher. Activities that were used in the classroom are described, pictured, and thoroughly explained. The teacher also chronicles her feelings and teaching activities in a personal, frank, month-by-month account, listing frustrations, worries, and finally feelings of pleasure in the students' reactions. The book concludes with evaluation results and plans for the future.

This book is research based and at times scholarly; it is also generally very readable. Experiments in which students were asked to perform certain tasks are graphically described, and the levels of student thinking are clearly labeled. Many of the evaluation results are interspersed with students' comments, so the flavor of the research results is very practical and understandable to the teacher whose back- ground may be limited in research methodol- ogy. In the foreword, the author suggests that some readers might prefer to begin the book by

REFEREES! fiTjh An Invitation from the VvkiSilífi Editorial Panel Wkv!

The Editorial Panel invites members interested in serv- uff I 111 ing as a referee of manuscripts to request guidelines RW I ll/ and a personal data sheet from NCTM. Ill I ' I I m

Each of the articles that appears in the Arithmetic III I I //flh m

Teacher is judged for content and style by at least three Mil ftjja referees. The success of the Arithmetic Teacher is very !'<■ ■■■! _;■■( much dependent on these volunteer efforts. I '

May 1987

reading the theoretical foundations after read- ing the research results. Since many of the choices made by the teacher and researcher are based on the theory in part 1 , the book is more meaningful if read from front to back, although it may be easier reading to begin later in the book.

This book is very thought-provoking and should provide the impetus for much study and discussion. - Tonya Dessert Urbatsch, Daven- port Community Schools, Davenport, I A 52803.

Etcetera Mastering Fractions, includes 3 video- discs, instructor's manual, 35 student response booklets, $1800 per set (available separately: instructor's manual, $29.95; student response booklets, $1.50 ea.). Systems Impact, 4400 Mac Arthur Blvd., NW, Washington, DC 20007.

This minicourse on fractions furnishes thirty- five lessons (35-45 minutes each), with a teach- review-test format, that include generating equivalent fractions; simplifying fractions; writ- ing mixed numbers as fractions, and vice versa; and adding, subtracting, multiplying, and divid- ing fractions. The package includes three vid- eodiscs and a large binder with very thorough documentation.

The videodiscs are not designed for individ- ual interactive use by students but for presen- tation to an entire class; the presentation is controlled by the teacher. The use of the vid- eodisc player and custom-designed, remote control keypad is easily learned and should not deter any teacher. The teaching section of each lesson uses both a human presenting the ideas and delightful graphics as illustrations that will undoubtedly capture students' interest. To each session the students bring pencils, a response booklet, and lined paper. During the teaching sessions, the students are expected to answer aloud the questions posed by the narrator. During the quiz section, the students are di- rected to work their problems on the left side of the lined paper and to make corrections on the right. Quizzes are short, and feedback is imme- diate. The teacher checks the students' per- formance, and if more than 20 percent of the class missed the problems, the teacher is di- rected to a remedial sequence. The teacher can adjust the rate at which the class moves by skipping the quizzes and reviews, if they are not needed. In this program, the design and presen- tation of instruction are not left up to the teacher, a fact that might be considered a disadvantage. However, one advantage of the system is that the teacher is free to work more directly with each student. Another advantage might well be that our students, being so tuned

Edited by Carol Novillis Larson University of Arizona Tucson, AZ 85721

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