Three Professors Discuss CITE Project

Three professors from SUNY Poly’s College of Arts and Sciences, Dr. Ana Jofre (PI), Dr. Kristina Boylan, and Dr. Ibrahim Yucel, have written a chapter in the recently published book, “Rethinking Freire and Illich: Historical, Philosophical, and Theological Perspectives.”   

In their chapter, titled “Building Convivial Educational Tools in the Twenty-First Century,” they argue that placing Brazilian philosopher/educator Paulo Freire (best-known for writing Pedagogy of the Oppressed) and Austrian theologian and intellectual Ivan Illich, S.J. in dialogue with linguist James Paul Gee’s insights on what games (video games and otherwise) can teach us about deep engagement with source materials, literature, and learning and creative processes, provides a foundation for creating interactive educational tools. In this case, it means a tangible user interface (TUI) that affords multiple pathways to both examining information and working with it.    
 
Furthermore, the trio combine a theoretical framework for including Freire’s and Illich’s insights in analyzing educational challenges that they’ve witnessed in the present, particularly a lack of student engagement with and comprehension of data, the ways in which the presentation of information and methods to work with it have produced exclusions grounded in differences in intellectual, sensory, and physical abilities, and other barriers to collaboration. The theoretical foundations offered are a combination of insights from educators and designers who have worked on similarly-intended TUIs and tested various aspects of active and multisensory-engagement-oriented learning, including those focusing on inclusive design to mitigate historical exclusions.  
 
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