Shop Class for the Next Millenium: Education through Computer-Enriched Handicrafts

In this paper we use our experiences with the HyperGami program as a springboard for a broader look at the future of computationally-enriched handicrafts. HyperGami is an educational application for the design and construction of mathematical models and sculptures in paper; as such, it serves as a source of examples and insights for the more general problem of how to integrate the "high-tech" features of computation with the "low-tech" features of traditional craft materials in education. We begin by describing the HyperGami program, focusing on those features that were designed in response to problems encountered by papercrafters; we illustrate the program's capabilities by presenting some of our own and our students' papercraft designs; and we describe our initial steps in implementing elements of HyperGami on the World Wide Web. In the closing sections of the paper, we explore the broader educational issues involved in integrating computation and handicrafts; and we conclude with a discussion of how physical objects could play a role in a future "educational object economy." Reviewers: Timothy Koschmann (U. Illinois), Agnes Kukulska-Hulme (Open. U.), Henry Lieberman (MIT) Interactive elements: The HyperGami website includes Java applets for rotating and constructing polyhedra, plus video clips of an animated sculpture, included with this article. HyperGami is available free of charge, and JavaGami will be released soon. Interactive demonstrations: The authors' HyperGami website includes Java applets for rotating and constructing polyhedra http://www.cs.colorado.edu/~eisenbea/hypergami , plus two QuickTime videos of an animated HyperGami sculpture, included with this article . HyperGami is available free of charge, and runs on any color Macintosh with at least 12 MB of free RAM. Email nishioka@cs.colorado.edu for further information. A Java version called JavaGami will be released soon. Subscribe to the article's commentaries area to receive this announcement. ).

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