Virtually Deschooling Society: Authentic Collaborative Learning via the Internet

The Internet has tremendous potential for K-12 education. However, learning how to exploit that potential remains an important problem. This paper uses ideas from situated learning and the deschooling movement to address the argument that there has been no significant reform (technology-based or otherwise) of public education for over a century. A preliminary educational model, focusing attention on the need for engagement with authenticity, is presented. The notion of authentic collaborative learning is introduced, and a number of requirements that are desirable in a technological system to support such learning are suggested. Contains 13 references. (AEF)