Wireless and Mobile Communications in Education

1
Wireless and Mobile Communications in Education

• Brendan Riordan
• Senior Lecturer in Computer Science
• University of Wolverhampton, UK

2
Wireless and Mobile Devices
Smart Phone
Graphical Calculator
Mobile Phone
Graphics Tablet
Laptop Computer
PDA
Gameboy
3
Introduction

• Many researchers as well as academic and
  industrial practitioners are currently exploring
  the potential of mobile and wireless devices for
  supporting learning.
• The challenges are many
• adapting and appropriating the technology for
  learning in a way consistent with learning goals
  and principles,
• the setting up and testing of prototypical
  applications and scenarios,
• the development of specific software tools and
  architectures, among others.

4
Who is the target audience ?

• Those in F/T or P/T Education
• Lifelong Learners
• Work Oriented Learners
• Skills updating
• Re-Training
• Formal Qualifications, eg MBA
• Retired People
• A recent UK study showed that on average adults
  spend up to 15 hrs per week acquiring new
  knowledge or skills

5
Challenges

• No previous examples of good practise
• Requires new approaches to teaching
• Little useful research on what ideas actually
  work
• Teachers need directing
• Few books on the subject
• Keeping the enthusiasm generated by the Wow !
  factor

6
Traditional Approach
7
Elearning Approach
8
Use of Mobile Phones

• Teaching English to Japanese students at Kinjo
  Gakuin University
• Words pushed to students
• Word definitions accompanied by 30second videos
• In total 100 new words sent out at regular
  intervals
• 100 of students possessed phones, 99 used them
  for email
• 71 preferred to receive lessons by phone rather
  than by a PC
• 93 felt this was a valuable teaching method

9
Use of PDAs

• University of Wolverhampton in conjunction with
  Sony
• Students at risk identified and given a PDA
• PDA preloaded with useful information
• Each week PDA updated with lectures for next week
  etc
• Useful as a time management tool, and a
  repository of electronic information

10
Wireless Feedback

• MIT using feedback devices in lectures
• Instant feedback during lecture
• At junction points, staff can assess whether to
  proceed, consolidate or even backtrack
• Students can pose questions anonymously
• Used to gather statistics

11
USE of PDAs by Medical Students

• David Geffen School of Medicine UCLA
• Enhance students clinical knowledge and skills
• Number of standard clinical books are free or
  very low cost
• Use for clinical calculations
• Logging of patient logs
• Automatic updating of central patient records
• Achieved using cheap devices US200

12
WiTEC

• Wireless Technology Enhanced Classroom
• Dept. of Computer Science, NCU, Taiwan
• Use of intelligent white boards, plus student
  mobile devices
• Pilot study in 3 elementary schools in Taipei
• Introduction from white board, material pushed to
  student devices, students work in groups, present
  findings back to class via whiteboards, peer
  evaluation, conclusions led by teacher

13
Whiteboards
14
Collaborative LearningCatholic University, Chile
) ) ) )
1 - Teacher downloads prepared activity from web
to PocketPC
2 - Teacher transmits activity to class
3 Groups work collaboratively
) ) ) )
4 At the end of the class, the teacher collects
the work
5 Results are analysed, and made available to
parents on the web
15
Retrieving Work Via Email

• Department of Computer Science, National
  Chiao-Tung University
• Lectures stored on University Server
• Student can issue command to server via email
• Email server takes command, formats it and sends
  to main server
• Main server delivers page/s back to student using
  mobile phone, PC, PDA etc

16
The Handheld-centric Classroom

• Handheld computers becoming the choice for 11
  computing
• Extended, multimedia projects now possible
• True collaboration possible
• Tracking of learning activities for teachers and
  parents

17
Informal and Conversational Learning

• The best teaching is child parent
  (conversation)
• Wireless devices and webcasts allow students to
  interact with experts (UK)
• Australian government has set up a project to
  bring leaders of technology/science and the
  public together electronically discussing
  issues of mutual interest
• Children move from being passive learners to
  active learners

18
Problems

• Battery
• Screen
• Keyboard
• Poor set of current applications (designed for
  the businessman PIM)
• Teachers need a common set of tools
• Must concentrate on mobile learning, not
  mobile teaching
• In UK 40 of students have mobile devices, other
  than mobile phones. Typical ?
• Possible creation of digital divide
• Now real mobile operating system (Nokia
  interested in developing one)

19
Where next ?

• Right idea right time
• Technology convergence
• Now possible to give EVERY child in the country a
  mobile device (cheaper than a PC or laptop)
  PDAwireless US300
• Teacher to become a mediator, using the best
  possible teaching resources
• Young people use and want this type of technology
  they are driving new ways of learning
• Wireless access, anytime, anywhere
• More collaborative learning, peer-to-peer, child
  and parent, learners and experts

20
Questions ?