David Jonassen

David Jonassen

 * Distinguished professor University of Missouri Columbia

Where did they get their PhD?

 * Temple University, 1976 in Educational Media/Educational Psychology

Where have they taught / worked?

 * Distinguished professor of education University of Missouri-Columbia
 * Currently works as director of the Center for the Study of Problem Solving
 * Pennsylvania State University professor of instructional systems
 * Professor and chair of instructional technology University of Colorado at Denver
 * Assistant/Associate professor of instructional technology University of North Carolina at Greensboro
 * Elementary and junior high teaching
 * AV Production

What things are they best known for?

 * Constructivist learning and knowledge representation
 * Contributions to the study of problem solving

What are their three most important publications?

 * (His exact answer)“not sure how reliable I'll be. The objectivism vs. constructivism piece in 91 got people thinking (Jonassen, D.H. (1991). Objectivism vs. constructivism: Do we need a new paradigm? Educational Technology: Research and Development.) The book on problem solving is useful, but most people don't want to talk about problem solving. The third is surely one that I haven't written yet.”
 * He has published over 150 articles, 40 book chapters, and 29 books.

Who are their most frequent/favorite collaborators?

 * He said… “Students. Faculty tend to be too egotistical to be good collaborators.”

Who are their main philosophical rivals (if any)?

 * He says he has none, but he did say of Dave Merrill: I have always respected the coherence of his work and spent a lot of time researching, teaching, and working with his ideas. We developed the only fully functioning transaction generator that I know of. While we have diverged in perspective, he is now a noble adversary (conceptually speaking). The field needs multiple perspectives, and he is the most incisive advocate for objectivsm that I know of.

What (in)famous / apocryphal stories exist about this person?
David said:
 * “I really don't know. That would be an easier question if it were multiple choice”