Handheld computers as cognitive tools: An environmental learning project in Singapore

This design-based study uses handheld computers as cognitive tools to facilitate students' inquiry-based learning on environmental issues - 3Rs (Reduce, Reuse and Recycle) in a Singapore primary school. By using handheld computers, 40 Primary 4 students investigated how wastes are produced and what impact 3Rs can have on protecting the environment in a field trip. The results indicate improvements in the students' understanding of 3Rs as compared to before the activity. With the handheld computers, students' learning activities are more organized as a result of the complex processes made simple with the use of handheld computers as cognitive tools. In this study, it is not only the technology affordances, but the way the technologies were used in the context of the learning environment and the associated pedagogy that enables the handheld computers to serve as cognitive tools. Copyright © 2007 The authors and IOS Press.