The Fourth R

David Moursund

The 3Rs—Reading, wRiting, and aRithmetic—have been foundational in education for thousands of years. My recent book, The Fourth R, adds to that list Reasoning/computational thinking. It concerns using human brains and computer brains, individually and working together, to solve problems and accomplish thoughts. Like each of the traditional 3Rs, computational thinking is both a discipline of study and a fundamental cognitive tool.

The Fourth R considers the technological developments that will have the greatest impact on our lives in the near future and addresses the challenge of educating our students for the Knowledge Age. In 80 pages, the book presents a rationale for integrating reasoning/computational thinking into every subject area at every grade level. It recommends that every teacher, in every subject area and grade level, should be competent in using computers to help represent and solve the problems, accomplish the tasks, learn the content, and demonstrate knowledge of the content in the areas that they teach.

The Fourth R is available online for free download.

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David Moursund is an MLC founder and current MLC Board member, Professor Emeritus of the University of Oregon’s College of Education, founder of the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE), and founder of the nonprofit company Information Age Education. Click here to access the free Information Age Education materials.