mLearning: Doing the unthinkable and reaching the unreachable

mLearning: Doing the unthinkable and reaching the unreachable

Tom Brown, University of Pretoria

This is a highly entertaining and enlightening presentation covering:

• mLearning in rural Africa
• approaches to mLearning
• examples of mLearning and lessons learned
• future learning paradigms
• envisioning 2010
• the future role of mobile learning

Tom Brown's comments about mLearning in rural Africa are instructive:

• mLearning has already started to play a very important role in Africa
• m Learning has brought eLearning to the rural communities of Africa - to learners that we never imagind as eLearning learners just a few years ago
• mLearning is the gateway to eLearning for most learners in Africa as the rapidly growing wireless infrastructure increasingly fulfills their access needs
• Africa is leapfrogging from an unwired, non-existent eLearning infrastructure to a wirless eLearning infrastructure. Numerous statistics in this regard are already significant proof of this process.

http://tinyurl.com/7okbt

( Keynote address: mLearning - The Future of Mobile?, Ericsson Education Conference, September 9th 2005, Dublin)

M-learning and the new students' thinking

M-learning and the new students' thinking

Cecilie Murray

This article provides readers, especially those teaching and researching in the school sector, with much to think about in terms of educating future generations, starting with the highly topical Generation Y or Millennials. What do we really know about our students? How can we better respond to, and meet, their needs? The author invites some further and much needed discussion about issues regarding teaching the future student in a world of ever-increasing technology.

http://tinyurl.com/7m3k7

Enabling Mobile Learning

Enabling Mobile Learning

Ellen D. Wagner

This paper discusses the use of mobile learning in education, the current mobile learning landscape, lessons "e-learned", trends and the future mobile learning landscape.

http://tinyurl.com/8j6j7

(EDUCAUSE Review, vol. 40, no. 3 (May/June 2005): 40–53. )

The Handheld Classroom: Educational Implications of Mobile Technology

The Handheld Classroom: Educational Implications of Mobile Technology

Mark Finn and Natalie Vandenham

This paper explores the use of handheld computers in a variety of educational settings. It includes:

• an overview of recent research
• several key projects
• educational issues raised
• brief discussion of potential future uses of handhelds in the classroom (focusing particularly on the possibilities created by new wireless standards)

http://tinyurl.com/bo4rp

(Australian Journal of Emerging Technologies and Society, Vol 2, No 1, 2004)

Hand-Held Devices in the Classroom

A great resource database covering many aspects of the use of hand-held devices in education. The sites description follows:

"Hand-held devices are rapidly becoming a common technology at work, school, and play. There are many different handheld devices. Explore the following links on this page:
Personal Digital Assistants
GPS and GIS in the Classroom
Portable Electronic Keyboards
Digital Cameras
Other Devices

PDAs - Personal Digital Assistant by companies such as Palm share the same operating system called the Palm OS. You can download free and inexpensive software for your Palm OS from the Internet. You can "hot sync" your PDA with your computer and they work together as a great team.

An increasing number of applications are being developed for educational administrators, teachers, and students. Because they are inexpensive when compared to laptop computers, many schools are finding that a mixture of desktop, laptop, and handheld devices can be used to meet a variety of educational needs."

http://eduscapes.com/tap/topic78.htm

Txt Me: supporting disengaged youth using mobile technologies

There are two resources here. The first describes the actual project involving mobile technologies for disengaged youth; the second proposes recommendations for the use of m-learning strategies.

Projects: New Practices in Flexible Learning 2004: Txt Me: supporting disengaged youth using mobile technologies

Jill Jamieson

The project recognises that mobile phone use has become a pervasive communication tool among youth culture, and has aimed to develop recommendations and guidelines for VET providers on using this communication technology to support a sustainable learning culture with disengaged youth. Specifically, the project sought to find new ways to engage, motivate and sustain lifelong learning skills for these learners.

The project tested the hypothesis that m-learning strategies and mobile phone technology motivates and supports the retention of disengaged youth in learning programs and facilitates the development of lifelong learning skills through supporting collaborative, networked learning environments.

The overall goal of the project was to integrate readily accessible mobile technology into a vocational learning environment for the benefit of disengaged learners.

http://www.flexiblelearning.net.au/projects/txtme.htm


TxT Me: Supporting disengaged youth using mobile technologies.

Anne Ison, Alex Hayes, Sandra Robinson and Jill Jamieson

Recommendations for the use of m-learning strategies to support disengaged youth in vocational education and training.

http://tinyurl.com/amyce