Given their graphic capabilities, computers may facilitate the construction of geometric concepts. Comparative media research, however, reveals few differences between media; alterations in curricula or teaching strategies might also explain the positive results of many studies that compare computer to noncomputer media. Yet, there remain certain computer functions that non-computer media may not easily duplicate. This article reviews research to describe such functions of construction-oriented environments and to evaluate their unique contributions to students' learning of geometry. Implications for the design of geometric computer environments for geometry education are drawn.
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