Going
Beyond Skills: The Cognitive Approach as a Breakthrough
Abstract:
Technical and vocational
training and education have emphasized the mastering of skills as an
attempt for better efficiency. The fast change in the needed skills
due to the rapid evolving new technologies, should make educators more
critical of the methods used. The cognitive approach, based on a learner
centered approach gives, perhaps, a solution and a remedy. But this
is based on a two way approach: (a)The teachers attitude and (b)
the learners concerns.
Using each skill
as a "scheme" for concept introduction in specific situations,
and linking these schemes into a broad conceptual field, can enable
learners to be better prepared for coping with the rapid technological
changes.
While planning the
curriculum of the University of Balamand Institute of Technology we
tried to implement this approach by adopting such a strategy in the
design of the courses. This approach contributed for a better integration
of the different components of the curriculum . The paper will present
some examples which illustrate the organization of one subject, and
the interrelation between different subjects.
Author:
Georges Nahas
Georges N. Nahas
currently holds the post of Vice President at the University of Balamand
(U.O.B.). He was born in Tripoli - Lebanon, in 1945. He is a member
of the National Higher Education Committee, and the "Association
Libanaise des Sciences de l'Education" (ALSE). He has also been
a participating member in the Curriculum Evaluation Forum held by ALSE,
and is the Chairman of the Curriculum Design Committee at U.O.B.
His academic interests
are varied. Within the field of Education, he has many activities regarding
program content, learning process, language of instruction, and conceptualization
in the sciences. As for the religious field, his activities are related
to comparative religious studies especially the Christian-Muslim dialogue,
and various Orthodox thoughts.
Georges NAHAS holds
a Ph.D. in Education from the Université René Descartes
- Paris V (1994). He holds a D.E.A. in Mathemathics - Topology from
the Université de Paris (1969).
His employment record
is as follows: