Goal-based Scenarios

The notion that "an interest is a terrible thing to waste" starts the first paper in this issue. Although this idea isn't all that controversial, it is generally forgotten in education as students are immersed in listening to teachers, drilling and practicing, and carrying out recipes in the lab. Educators wonder why students aren't more excited about learning. What would happen if learning activities were restructured in ways that allow students to pursue the things that interest them most?

This special issue focuses on goal-based scenarios -- situations in which students set out to achieve sets of goals defined by their mission, and through active achievement of those goals, learn the skills and facts that must be learned. As such, it presents an educational philosophy that capitalizes on the fact that people are generally driven to investigate and pursue the things that interest them most. It asks our educators to use their imaginations to put students in situations where they will want to learn -- not just to take in knowledge, but to be active participants in learning the skills they will need to get through life. If the activities are interesting enough, it posits, the students will eagerly learn that which is important for them to know.