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What is mLearning?
Let us clear the air of any doubts and misconceptions: mobile learning is NOT new. A businessperson learning some new business skills from a business journal, whilst in flight above the Atlantic Ocean, is actively engaged in a form of mobile learning. A young student travelling Highway One (Australia) on a sixth month “trip of a lifetime” with their family and utilising distance education materials is using a form of mobile learning. In fact, Watson and White comment in their paper ‘mLearning in Education – A Summary’ that “...the first widespread mLearning device was the book...”
What IS new about mLearning in the 21st century is that it is able to integrate modern communications technology so that essential pedagogical principles can be followed.
Why is mLearning an important extension of eLearning?
Let us also acknowledge, just as we have acknowledged that mobile learning is not ‘new’, that neither is it a stand-alone or separate method of learning. mLearning cannot function in its modern-sense without a sound basis of eLearning infrastructure. As such, mLearning can be considered an addition or developmental phase of eLearning.
mLearning however is able to assist with the successful implementation of pedagogical principles that eLearning can – at times – fail to deliver. Christine Armatas et al., in the paper 'Balancing the possibilities for mobile technologies in higher education' explains the benefits of mLearning accessibility:
“…the value of any online environment is limited by how accessible it is to students and the level of student engagement, such that if students can’t or don’t access the online environment they potentially miss out on information critical to their learning experience...”
How can mLearning be defined?
So, mLearning is not new. Neither is it an entirely separate mode of education. How then to define this 21st century phenomenon?
1. "...any service or facility that supplies a learner with general electronic information and educational content that aids in acquisition of knowledge regardless of location and time ..." (Lehner & Nosekabel, 2002)
2. Vavoula and Sharples (2002) suggest three ways in which learning can be considered mobile as "... learning is mobile in terms of space; it is mobile in different areas of life; it is mobile with respect to time ..."
3. "...I ... define m-learning as the use, both synchronously and asynchronously, of mobile communication technology (MCT) to achieve a learning task or outcome..." (Freysen, 2004)
mLearning is therefore a technology reliant mode of providing a learning environment that can deliver interactive content at anytime and at anyplace where it is required.
Pedagogically speaking....?
Is mLearning pedagogically sound? Unlike our efforts to clearly define mLearning and to determine its pedigree, the answer to this question is a clear and resounding ‘yes’.
There are many key characteristics of effective pedagogy that mlearning is fully able to support:
Behaviourist learning: Mobile devices are able to deliver and present interactive materials, gathering and process responses via the interaction, and provide appropriate rapid response.
Constructivist learning: Mobile devices are able to operate within the relevant environment in which the Learner is based, embedding the learning in a realistic context.
Situated Learning / Contextual Learning / Experiential Learning: Mobile devices promote a learning experience that is immediate, authentic and relevant to the Learner’s frame of reference.
Collaborative Learning: Mobile devices provide connectivity to people and systems both within the immediate learning context and outside of it. Social interaction and collaboration – both formal and informal - is enhanced from the ease of such connectivity.
Informal and lifelong learning / Autonomous Learning: Mobile devices are able to operate outside of the dedicated learning environment and formal learning curriculum, enhancing ongoing learning opportunities.
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With a growing acceptance (although in some instances begrudgingly) that mobile devices have a valid pedagogical benefit, the trend towards mLearning continues to gain pace.
Marcus Ragus writing at The Knowledge Tree highlights the current trend:
"During the Mlearn 2005 conference in South Africa, Alan Munro, South African director of Fifth Digit Mobile Concepts presented a paper on mobile language application for the delivery of language courses through a mobile phone. The concept has its base in new SMS technologies that allow written content to be delivered to mobile phones via an SMS portal. He feels this system provides a new and very flexible approach to the delivery of this type of learning, stating that ‘…what makes this product unique is that it allows the learner to decide when and how frequently they receive the lessons’ (A. Munro, 2005, pers. comm., poster, 26 October). The organisation is also working with some innovative podcasting technologies and the use of podcasts through Mp3 enabled phones.
An innovative company here in Australia with an incredibly similar name to the above is Fifth Finger. They have launched a product called air-castTM Self Serve and although it has been aimed at the business sector it certainly has lots of potential for the education market. They describe the self serve part of this product as ‘…a web interface which clients use to instantaneously create and launch a range of SMS services based upon a predefined set of business rules’ (Fifth Finger 2006: para.2).
The interface is straight forward to set up and has a set of options that allows the user to develop a complete SMS portal that can, with some lateral thinking, be set up as a student survey tool, formative assessment area, student knowledge trail and lots more. It essentially works on the basis that the information the learner requires is added by the trainer to an SMS generating database via their desktop computer. This information can then be accessed through most mobile phones by way of a trigger code sent to an assigned phone number. Issues with this system are still primarily associated with the cost of the calls and who pays. Access to the web interface is costed by the company as a monthly fee.
The other interest for many of the innovators in these technologies is the enormous future potential of the 3G platform and its possibilities for the multimedia arena, in particular the transmission of television and video through mobile phones. Known as the mobile broadcasting revolution this is an area that the learning sector needs to keep a close eye on."
"Mobiles break bones as Africa aims high
By Wycliffe Muga
Business programmes, BBC World Service
Sometime last year, the Ugandan humorist, Joachim Buwembo declared that he had discovered a new epidemic that threatened many lives in Africa.
This was a condition he named as Nebrols.
He noted that the rapid spread of this condition had been detected in rural parts of Uganda, where medical workers found themselves overwhelmed by the number of elderly men and women who had sought treatment for broken arms and legs.
What he was describing, as it turned out, was one of the incidental outcomes of the spread of mobile phone use in Uganda.
The speed at which the mobile phone companies were rolling out their networks had not kept pace with the rate at which the phones were being bought and distributed all over the country.
So there were parts of rural Uganda in which there were plenty of elderly men and women with mobile phones, but where the network signal was so weak that the only way to make a phone call was to climb up a tree on some nearby hill, and make your call while clinging to its branches.
When old people begin to climb tall trees there is bound to be a sudden increase in falls and broken bones.
Hence the epidemic of Nebrols - an acronym for the Network Broken Limbs Syndrome.
And although Buwembo was only joking, the mobile telephone business in Africa has been a remarkable success story, which involved some of the best-known names in global telecommunications.
New giants
In Kenya, for example, the fixed line networks have not risen much beyond the approximately 400,000 lines that had been connected by the year 2000.
But in the past six years, almost five million mobile lines have been registered, and what was once a rich man's toy, is now to be found in the hands of every street vendor and market woman.
This, however, has led to some dangerous "magic thinking" on the benefits of modern technology, and a conviction in some government circles that other easy solutions can be found to problems of public infrastructure.
The Kenyan Minister for Information and Technology, for example, recently declared that "Information Technology will be the main driver of Kenya's economic growth", a statement that overlooks the fact that with 80% of Kenyans being small scale farmers, it is greater agricultural productivity that is more likely to yield such growth.
But such wild optimism was only to be expected.
Not only was this complete modernization of the telecommunications sector achieved within a few short years and at no cost to the government.
In addition, the mobile phone companies have since proved to be so profitable, they are now some of the biggest corporate taxpayers.
Energetic walkers
However this is not the sort of miracle that can be replicated in every sector of the economy.
There can be no painless solution, for example, to the fact that Kenya's electricity tariffs are so high that they make most Kenyan manufactured goods uncompetitive in export markets.
And although solar panels capable of providing free electric power have been available for much longer than mobile phones, these are still too expensive for most rural communities in Africa, where women continue to light kerosene lamps every evening.
Which goes a long way to explain why most people walk for miles to the nearest market centre, to charge their new mobile phones.
Story from BBC NEWS:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/go/pr/fr/-/1/hi/business/5344654.stm
Published: 2006/09/20 23:04:18 GMT
© BBC MMVI"
Is mobile Moodle "mMoodle"?
Even Moodle is going mobile!
Moodle forums within the official http://moodle.org/ site demonstrate the seriousness with which mobile integration is being actively sought. Martin Dougimas (Moodle founder) has even expressed the importance of this process at the Moodlemoot 2006 conference.
The EU recognises the benefit of mLearning
EU targets 'needy' Learners
Project motivation and aim
The target audience for m-learning is those young adults, aged 16 to 24, who have not succeeded in the education system, cannot read and write adequately and have problems with simple calculations. They are not currently involved in any education or training andmay be unemployed, under employed, or even homeless. What do many of these young people have in common? – A mobile phone! The m-learning project is investigating how mobile phones, and other mobile devices, might be used to engage these young people in learning activities, start changing their attitudes to learning and thereby contribute to improving their skills, opportunities and lives.
mLearning flyer
(A copy of this file is attached to this knowledgeGarden page. Acccess by selecting the Files Attached link at the bottom of this page)
http://www.m-learning.org.org/
Additional Material and Viewpoints
" I particularly like the podcast on M-Learning, and the phrase "techno tarts" which made me laugh.
Seriously though the comment that "M-learning allows us to get beyond learning about technology and move to learning with technology" sums it up. So many learners now are already familar with mobiles phones, PDA's, instant messaging etc that educators should be working with the flow not against it.
It seems to me that mlearning is the ultimate EPSS (electronic performance support system). If the phone or PDA is in your pocket then the content you need is right there with you when you need it.
Cheers"
" Gartner offer a definition of mobile e-learning: Mobile e-learning solutions enable training and development teams to create, publish, notify, deliver and track learning content and manage learning interactions for mobile users, regardless of their mobile devices. To me this definition does not cover the communication capability afforded by the technology. The definition seems to focus on the "management" of learning again, rather than the learning itself."
"With a growing acceptance (although in some instances begrudgingly) that mobile devices have a valid pedagogical benefit, the trend towards mLearning continues to gain pace." Yes, I am one of those people who use to loathe mobile phones; I was forced to get my first one 5 years ago, and never bothered to upgrade it until this year, when I got a freebie off a friend. With this newer model (still no camera or fancy features like that though!) I slowly started to use text messaging, and now find myself quite comfortable with the technology, although I am not addicted to it. I think, now, that m-learning can, and will, be a force to be reckoned with, something I never thought myself could happen, and up until recently, would have resisted terribly!
The September issue of the Knowledge Tree ( http://kt.flexiblelearning.net.au/edition-11-editorial/book-review-kukulska-hulme-traxler-2005-mobile-learning-a-handbook-for-educators-and-trainers/ ) has a review of an interesting book on Mobile Learning. The review is by Ian Robertson and the book is Mobile learning: A handbook for educators and trainers by Kukulska-Hulme A. & Traxler J. (eds.) 2005. The review is enough to give a clear definition of Mobile learning, and a good run down of the tools and technologies involved and the features that enable mobile learning. I particulary like the comments about mobile learning being nothing new - we have always been able to wander around while we read a book, or ..remember all those motivational tapes you put into your walkman?
Time to get controversial - and I'll play devils advocate! My question is WHO wants to "learn" on a PDA or mobile phone? I mean - have you ever tried to web-surf or interact meaningfully on the net with those tiny screens (yep - I have). Is mLearning really a good vehicle for content, media etc? Certainly the costs in some countries are currently prohibitive - even in Ausralia GPRS is outrageously expensive for digital content. Things will improve with 3G etc. and some countries are already right into that ... but it's still a tiny device, with a tiny screen, and an awkward keypad. So what is the "learning" in mLearning .. really? For me it's more about communication and a feeling of connectedness. I don't want screeds of content, text or multimedia pouring into my PDA ... but I would like to get short updates and messages, quick news items, simple tasks/activities from teachers and other learners that I'm engaged with at the time. So maybe Gartner is right ... at the moment mLearning is more about managing and supporting learning than being a primary learning channel?
Nic, I tend to agree. I have been one of those "sunrise" users who rushes into new technology. Personally, I have ditched PDAs and have opted for a telephone-only mobile phone. However, I have been in a few developing countries and have been surprised by the uptake of mobile phones. Yes, this is big business at its worst: promoting 'tech' to societies without clean water. Agreed. And yes, the costs are prohibitive for data transfer.
However, I see a great potential in all of these millions of little computers in the hands of developing countries. Lets say that a government (insert any government of your choice) gets behind an mLearning programme so makes the data transmission low cost. Free? Lets say that the course was language learning. The course could start with 'traditional' learning, then be supported by sms and podcast.
We are a long way from this now, but I do see potential.
Yes, I tend to agree with the question "who would want to learn on those tiny screens?". As Nic pointed out, I also think that the pedagogical advantages of this technology is in its ability to keep you in touch with the world, your teacher, your classmates, etc. Think of very busy people (all of us!): being able to check emails, forum posts, monitor your blog, etc. from your phone while on the train to work, this would be using time effectively (although I do enjoy a good book on the 20 minutes on the train!). A personal example of how m-learning could help me: as you know, I have some business trips coming up, and will feel rather disconnected; if I was able to "check in" with my team members, Shirley, etc. using my phone, say, on the way to the airport, etc. this would be most useful. But again, this would be more a matter of convenience that of what I would choose as a learning environment.
In all of this, are there health risks (a thought triggered by the African Tree article) and by the memory of a mental patient my mother nursed who wore a tin bucket over his head because of "all the rays" that were going through his head. However, humour aside, I find it odd that four my colleagues suffer from the same problem-- brain tumours that seem to have no identified cause, and remember reading about health risks of base stations, which seems to have gone silent now. I found a WHO article on this but wonder if there is ongoing research??
Jean, I can't say I agree. Like so many things there are scare tactics used for various political / business means. The "Africa Tree" article is only tongue-in-cheek. The greatest health risk with mobile devices would appear to be lapsed driver concentration!
I have used a Palm for learning Kanji and found it a useful tool that limited activity allowing me to take it and study also useful with a fold-up keyboard for word documents and email. Pedagogically it allowed me to increase time with the material. For the Airplane it fit ion the fold down tray and the battery lasted a week! The screen is small and I’m not sure how long it will be useful now that I am over 40 small print has become a bit more challenging.
I don't think learning from your PDA or mobile phone is very practical, although in 1999 I bought one of the first e-books (a paperback size handheld screen on which you could download e-books from various publishers - but the company went bust) which I used for a lot of air travel as it was portable and easy on the eyes and a bit 'novel' at the time. However, I think m-learning will not be learning on the mobile - but communicating about the learning. For example - teacher posts messages about latest class news, assignments etc, and students post their responses to various topics etc. Instant messaging may be the limit to me of using mobile devices as I want the convenience of either something I can carry and read (a printed book etc) or a decent size screen and keyboard to work on. I note that PDAs come with attachable keyboards, but I think they will revert to all purpose phones with cameras, email etc, and it seems as if PDAs are declining as Nokia and other come up with multipurpose phones
Paul, there are definitely restrictions on limited screen sizes, battery life and so on. However, don't you think that if some of these 'technicalities' can be fixed that mLearning devices will become both useful and accepted? I still think of the good old fashioned device with some very serious constraints that I used as a child for much of my learning (I was remote in both location and attitude).
It didn't seem too restrictive at the time....... but I recall now the incredibly limited graphics capability, NO sound capability and a definite "one way" mode of teaching from this device. Today's devices and their current 'limitations' would have been a dream for me as a child.
I thinkyou can still get these devices: Dymocks have a range. I think Borders keep them. Libraries may still have some.
A really good example (I think) of mlearning, is something someone showed me ages ago. It is a little video of how to tie a bow tie - from the perspective of the man tieing it. Imagine (Colin and Nic) that you are late for a hot date with (?? - fill in the gap yourselves) to the Oscars, and you can't get you bowtie done. Whip out your PDA or phone, and set it up on the dressing table - and you're away. Content that is useful but not earth shattering, packaged and delivered in an extremely convenient way!!
with the climate in Fiji, EVERY date is a hot date!
A good point, though Miranda. Some of the trials and implementations of mLearning are really that simple. There is one for students to use PDAs in museums simply to replace a guidebook. The students respond better to the 'tech' nature of the device, the device responds to the location in which the student is located (I can just picture a system programmed so that if the students 'sneak' off, the teachers voice will scream into their headset "are you paying attention!"), and the facilitator also gets the benefit of tracking and progress reports. But all this device is really 'doing' is replacing a standard guidebook.
As an aid to whichever LMS is implemented I can also see benefits of a greater mobile phone integration.
Many kG travellers may argue that this is not in fact part of the learning process: I personally believe that both the LMS and the learning interact so closely that thay cannot be considered separately.
Consider you own involvement with remote learning. There are many examples where even the simple functionality of sms would be of benefit. A reminder of a meeting? The confirmation that an assignment has been received / marked? Notification that webCT has "crashed" and notification when it is back "online"?
If these type of communictions assist in the LMS, then by default are they not also assisting in the learning process?
Related knowledgeGarden pages
The Tool Group
This page is used by a small FET8604 group to establish a format for an assessment paper.
My experience with M-learning has been limited till the beginning of this academic year. Recently, our college had gained from introducing the mobile and wireless technologies by improving their institutional efficiency and communication with the college community. Students are getting results, timetable updates, class cancellations and many more …on their mobiles.
Equally important has been the role of these technologies in offering new ways for students at our college to participate in learning activities. The mobile devises which are gaining popularity at our college are: Laptops, Tablet PCs, Mobile Phones, and Personal Digital Assistant (PDA)
We are seeing some evidence that the students at our college are taking some control of their own learning process using mobile technology devices such as the tablet PCs. We are no longer afraid to control students’ use of computers, but now the test is how the students are using technology to improve their own learning.
Some more benefits for mobile technologies at our college are seen with the use of Blackberry mobile phones. Some staff members are using those devices to check emails, assist in time management, calendar, to-do-list, alarm, cameras, voice recording and many more functionalities that help to keep them engaged on a daily basis.
M-learning in 2008 will see more use of portable devices like PDA, Mobile Phones and Tablet PCs. On the other hand there are still some constraints on the use of the small mobile technologies like battery life, small screens, cost, and resultions.
http://www.educause.edu/ir/library/pdf/ERM0451.pdf
Are you ready for Mobile Learning?
http://www.eee.bham.ac.uk/sharplem/Papers/handler%20comped.pdf
This paper sets out a framework for the design of a new genre of educational technology: personal (handheld or wearable) computer systems that support learning from any location throughout a lifetime. We set out a theory of lifelong learning mediated by technology and indicate how it can provide requirements for the software, hardware, communications and interface design of a handheld learning resource, or HandLeR. The paper concludes with a description and formative evaluation of a demonstrator system for children aged 7 to 11.
Extract from http://www.elsevier.com/locate/compedu
References
e.g. Intext citations and reference list, (2006). In KnowledgeGarden: Our Learning Community. Retrieved April 20 2006, from http://knowledgeGarden.usq.edu.au/tiki-index.php?page_id=323
Armatas, C., Holt, D. and Rice, M., (2006) “Balancing the possibilities for mobile technologies in higher education”, Proceedings of Australian Society for Computers in Learning and Tertiary Education conference 2005: Balance, Fidelity, Mobility: maintaining the momentum. Brisbane, Australia. Retrieved 23 September 2006 from
www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/brisbane05/blogs/proceedings/04_Armatas.pdf
(A copy of this file is attached to this knowledgeGarden page. Acccess by selecting the Files Attached link at the bottom of this page)
Freysen, j. (2004) “M-learning: An Educational Perspective” extract from Mobile learning anytime everywhere Pp 73-75 MLearn 2004 (eds Attewell, J. and Savill-Smith, C.), Learning and Development Skills Agency, London, UK. Retrieved 23 September 2006 from
http://www.mobilearn.org/download/events/mlearn_2004/MLEARN_%202004_book_of_conference_papers.pdf
(A copy of this file is attached to this knowledgeGarden page. Acccess by selecting the Files Attached link at the bottom of this page)
Lehner, F. and Nosekabel, H. (2002). The Role of Mobile Devices in E-learning -
First Experience with an E-learning Environment. Proceedings of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers conference 2002: Wireless and Mobile Technologies in Education. Växjö, Sweden
Sharples, M., Taylor, J., and Vavoula, G. (2005) “Towards a Theory of Mobile Learning” Proceedings of mLearn conference 2005: Mobile technology: The future of learning in your hands. Cape Town, South Africa. Retrieved 23 September 2006 from
http://www.mlearn.org.za/CD/papers/Sharples-%20Theory%20of%20Mobile.pdf
(A copy of this file is attached to this knowledgeGarden page. Acccess by selecting the Files Attached link at the bottom of this page)
Sharples, M. and Vavoula, G. N. (n.d.). “Putting Order to Episodic and Semantic Learning Memories: The Case for Kleos”, Univeristy of Birmingham, UK. Retrieved 23 September 2006 from
http://www.eee.bham.ac.uk/sharplem/Papers/Vavoula%20HCI2003%20KLeOS%20%20FULL%20PAPER%20SUBMITTED.pdf
(A copy of this file is attached to this knowledgeGarden page. Acccess by selecting the Files Attached link at the bottom of this page)
Watson, H. and White, G. (2006) “MLEARNING IN EDUCATION – A SUMMARY”, July 2006, education.au limited, Dulwich, Australia. Retrieved 23 September 2006 from
www.educationau.edu.au/jahia/webdav/site/myjahiasite/shared/site/mLearning.pdf
(A copy of this file is attached to this knowledgeGarden page. Acccess by selecting the Files Attached link at the bottom of this page)
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