The Research And Development Of Geometrical Educational Software For Primary School

Recent years have seen a great development in the educational software research with the rapid progress in China's educational informationization. A large number of educational software designed for teachers, parents and students appear in the market. However, while bringing convenience to its users, the educational software in the market has many problems. For example, it is merely a representation of textbook knowledge in computer and lacks humanistic element in design.To solve these problems, we can find answers in the constructivism theory. According to the constructivism, the learner is the central unit in learning process. Instead of being a passive recipient of knowledge, he is an active processer of information, the actual main body in knowledge construction. Under the guidance of this theory, the design of education software should center on the learning task and questions to be solved, with the aim to assist learners in constructing knowledge by providing learning resources, real situation, cognitive tool and management.In addition to constructivism, the education software designers can also draw from the thought of integrableware to make their product more flexible and applicable. The thought of integrableware comes from the reflection on the shortcomings of the courseware. For instance, a courseware cannot be used in a wide range of teaching modules. One of the key points in thought of integrableware is the primitive component, that is, basic teaching components which are functional but undividable in integrableware system. Another key points in thought of integrableware is integrable, which means those components can be organized in flexible ways to form multi-functional teaching modules or courseware. To make my research more practicable and realistic, I select the geometry in primary school as the main object of educational software. Geometry, as an important part in primary school mathematics, is crucial to the students'development in cognitive ability. The pupils are at the transitional stage where their cognitive capability is developing from imagery to abstract thinking. Geometry learning can facilitate their cognitive development since figures prove easier for them to understand and help them reach abstract conceptions.My research endeavors to conduct a profound study on the development and application of geometry education software for pupils by focusing on the geometry learning in primary school, drawing from the constructivism and thought of integrableware, and utilizing the technology of multi-media and ActionScript3.0. Keywords:Primary Geometry, Education Software,Constructivism,Integrableware...