24/7 Learning in a Mobile World

Gerald C. GannodProfessor, Computer Science & Software Engineering

Director, Mobile Learning CenterAffiliate, Armstrong Institute for Interactive Media Studies

http://mlearning.muohio.edu/mlcTwitter: @miami_mlearning

#ITforum

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What is the MLC?

• A joint venture between SEAS, AIMS, and IT Services– Unify efforts in mobile space on the campus

– Provide faculty, staff, and students a resource for mobile learning and mobile computing

– Support faculty by providing software development expertise

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“You Will” (1993)

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Ownership of Internet Enabled Handheld Device Among US College Student Internet

Users11.3

24.6

1.3

62.7

Don't own but plan to purchase in the next 12 mosDon't own and don't plan to purchase in next 12 mosDon't knowOwn

Source: EDUCAUSE Center for Applied Research, ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, 2010.

Get out your phones!http://bit.ly/mFodgm

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How people feel about their smartphones

Pew Internet 2011

http://pewinternet.org/Reports/2011/Smartphones/Summary.aspx

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App Crazy (iear.org)• Viewers and e-readers

– iAnnotate, Kindle, Nook, GoodReader

• Notes– Notetaker HD, Dragon

Dictation, Evernote

• Office Suite– iWork: Numbers, Keynote,

Pages

• Real-time communication– AIM, Skype, Airsketch

• Social Networking– Facebook, Twitter, Glympse

• Games

• Reference– Wikipanion, Newsy (news

aggregator)

• Mapping– Map

• Storage– GoodReader

• Brainstorming– Popplet, Adobe Ideas

• Content Specific (education apps)

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Technology in the classroom?

• New Media Consortium’s Horizon Report calls for adoption of mobile technology in the education for both K-12 and Higher Ed

• Abilene Christian, IIT, etc.

• iPad initiatives– http://nyti.ms/eIN2Dp

– http://bit.ly/fOVW2J

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Mobile Devices in the classroom

• St. Mary’s City Schools

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Is it Mobile Learning?

Does using a mobile device in the classroom mean that you

are using mobile learning?

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What is M-Learning?• M-Learning provides

an experience that is:– Personalized

– Authentic

– Situated

• 24/7 Learning– Anytime

– Anything

– Anywhere

• Trying to meet students where they are and in a context that allows us to engage them anywhere and anytime

• Facilitate active learning

• Leverages mobile platform

• Creates new opportunities

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What is M-Learning?

• Geo-Historian Project [13]

– Supports authentic and situated learning

– Unite schools with community resources

– Students can develop digital resources for community

– Example: Cuyahoga River Dam

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Do students learn?

How do we know whether students learn with these

tools?

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The Problem

• Mobile Learning pedagogies are not well defined…– Schools buy mobile technologies, but do not

know how to use them.

– Little research on the effectiveness of m-learning solutions

• Ex. Citizen Science (Project Noah)– Learners may be disengaged from core-

aspects of inquiry-based learning

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So…• What we want to know:– Does disengagement from some inquiry-based

learning process impact one’s ability to learn?

– Can mobile devices improve engagement and learning without a full understanding of some research problem?

• Research Thesis:– Data collection through a mobile device can

improve learning when a researcher is fully engaged in some method of inquiry-based instruction.

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Inquiry-Based Learning• Creation of a classroom environment where students are

engaged in open-ended, student-centered, and hands-on activities. [14]

• Banchi et al. suggest there are 4 levels of inquiry [2]

[2] Heather Banchi and Randy Bell. The many levels of inquiry. Science and Children, October 2008.

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Theoretical Foundations• Traxler argues that mobile learning is able to provide

an experience that is personalized, authentic, and situated. [12]

• Authentic and situated learning has the ability to increase student engagement and information retention. [11]

• Mobile devices can respond to varying needs of learners. [11]

• Communication capabilities of mobile devices make it easy for leaners to collaborate and communicate. [11]

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Inquiry and Effect on Education

• Research project looking at 2 different groups of people:– Lead Researchers

• Have Full Participation in scientific process

– Volunteers• Have Limited Participation in scientific process

• Focus on basic scientific method model– Research Buddy most effective in the

“Experiment” step

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Research Buddy

• Aggregates several research tools into a single platform

• Demo

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Research

• External Grants– Research Buddy: Revolutionizing

Undergraduate Student Research using Mobile Technology. (PI: G. Gannod, co-PI: G. Platt, Procter & Gamble, 2011, $10,000 total). This project is funded by a Procter & Gamble Higher Education Grant.

– Summer Support for K. Bachman, Nestle Corporation, Summer 2011.

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Recommendations

Gannod, G.C., and Bachman, K.M., Integrating M-Learning in a Broad Context: Issues and Recommendations, Proceedings of the Conference on Mobile Learning, IADIS, 2011.

What to consider before adoption of a mobile learning initiative

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Process• Graduate Seminar in CSE

formed to develop recommendations

• Developed rubric based on existing m-learning literature

• Analyzed existing m-learning techniques

• Discussed issues with K-12 m-learning practitioner

• 3 classes of recommendations– Adoption

– Technology

– Cost

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Adoption: M-learning should…

• Not be viewed as a replacement for existing techniques but rather as a supplement

• Be used to facilitate different dimensions of learning

• Be used to facilitate collaboration with instructors and other learners

• Be adopted as an institutional or broad initiative rather than a pilot by a small set of early adopters

• Be accompanied by protective measures to prevent abuses

• Accompanied by training for major constituents

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Technology: M-learning technologies…

• Should be extensible and programmable to support creation of add-ons

• Should be selected according to its intended use

• Should be accompanied with application acquisition policies (to address content abuse)

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Budget and Cost: Initiatives should…

• Consider a number of cost attributes including:– Quality of alternatives, relative replacement

schedules, network infrastructure, management software, IT support

• Consider pairing digital learning and m-learning with other cost savings (such as facilities costs)

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Conclusions• Mobile technology has the potential to

disrupt education

• Adoption of Mobile Learning should avoid rush to acquire technology and instead focus on pedagogy– Take advantage of “mobile” with tools like

Research Buddy

• Mobile efforts at Miami provide opportunities for students, faculty, and staff to get involved

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References• [11] Carly Shuler. Pockets of potential: Using mobile

technologies to promote chil dren's learning. Technical report, The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop, January 2009.

• [12] J. Traxler. Mobile learning: the moving nger writes and having writ. . . . The International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning, 8 (2), 2007.

• [13] M. van't Hooft and McNeal T. Mobile phones for mobile learning: The geo-historian project. In Proc. of the 2010 American Educational Research Association Conference, 2010.

• [14] Alan Colburn. An inquiry primer. Science Scope, pages 42-44, 2000.