Random Stuff on Mobile Learning

A couple of observations… They say Twitter is used more by (older) adults and I would agree but I would also say it is not used by college students. SMS messaging is one thing but micro-blogging is something parents do. Maybe students are not as narcissistic as older users of technology (baby boomers versus millennials). As a result, I still post class messages to Twitter but I have less than 5 percent of my students following me. At least for community college students, Twitter might not be a technology of significance. Thoughts / Comments?

My MLEX program has done me well this semester. I quickly created mobile syllabi and course calendars for my Fall classes.

And the big news …..maybe MLEX going open source this fall. A University in Canada (I am not sure I should publish the name without asking them) is interested in taking my MLEX (currently written in VB.NET) and migrating it to Java with the hopes of making it more powerful. The plan is for it to be open source so others can add to the program also. I am excited about this and as soon as some plans have been formalized, I will have more to share. I am psyched!

Leave it to Google

We have from time to time discussed how mobile device browsers do not do well with JavaScript and therefore it has not been easy to create mobile assessments (quizzes, tests, etc.). I created a solution using ASP.NET but this is somewhat constrained since you must use a IIS Server to host your pages. I have been experimenting with Google Forms for some surveys I have been creating and it appears to render fine on my cell phone. You can create text, M/C and option type questions from a Google Docs spreadsheet (select forms once in there) and it uses the spreadsheet to collect the responses and automatically summarizes the results. There are even themes to choose regarding form format. I think this would work fine for both quizzes and tests and the beauty is Google hosts it. You can also set up the document to "shared" where others can modify and read form captured results. Results are private by default unless sharing is specified. Many schools… such as mine… are taking advantage of Google email, calendar and Docs for students. Go Cloud Computing!

Google Forms does have promise…..

How uses iPhone

Get a group of techies in a room and everyone has an Apple iPhone. Get a group of community college students in a room and you see a lot of non-iPhones but cool looking hardware. Is hardware a bigger driver in cell phone selection then features? Is SMS the only feature really used and desired by the typical student? If so, we need to be spending a whole lot of more time on SMS gateway servers…. Food for thought… I think we are reaching a point where the mobile landscape has some definition with the following rules (my antidotal evidence):

• Wi-fi for mobile devices - not so important
  
• Applications for mobile devices - not so important
  
• GPS support - not so important
  
• SMS – critical
  
• Internet Browsing – too early to know for sure but Internet Apps and cloud computing might be the direction
  
• PDA's – probably dead
  

Thoughts/Comments?

Mobile Learning Assessment – same…different then other course assessment?

The back drop of the question…(warning: this is a thinking post)

I am preparing for a panel discussion at the 25^th Annual Distance Teaching and Learning Conference at the University of Wisconsin – Madison. Part of my responsibility is to cover the topic of mobile learning effectiveness (a.k.a. assessment). I would summarize my interpretation of that request to be “is mobile learning as effective as or more effective than other delivery systems (specifically, traditional which is still the most common).”

Assessment is never one of the most popular teaching activities and although quality improvement programs and accreditation have placed an emphasis on assessment. It is still a topic that is more often than not treated as an afterthought rather than a priority. In the case of new technology, it is easy to become focused on getting the technology to work and not as interested in incorporated a formal assessment. Usually, the faculty member will create an end of course professional assessment on whether the new technology worked or not. Typically, is ends up being and evaluation of the class technology and whether it should be scrapped or more likely modified to make sure the technology works better next time. An attempt to prove its validity against other delivery mechanisms is not usually part of the plan. For me, my assessment is an assessment of learning objectives and if they were met. The delivery mechanism is not important unless it causes learning objectives not to be met. I currently teacher in a traditional, hybrid/blended and online format. Mobile devices/learning supplements all my classes (this is another subject in itself).

Mobile Learning Assessment

I would argue that assessment is assessment. When a teacher evaluates their learning objectives whether through testing, survey and observations, the process supports defect prevention and continuous quality improvement. This is good. Standardized assessment may be very difficult to achieve. Even if it was standardized, to what extent is it important? Even if a standard is created; Not all teachers are the same; Not all subject can be viewed the same; Not all technology is same; Technology changes and it can affect classes from semester to semester. The nature of mobile learning can be very diverse. One teacher may leave students mostly on their own and another may have close supervisor of student learning on mobile devices. A standardized assessment maybe “a tough nut to crack.”

I vote, any assessment is good…

I think a discussion on discussing the merits of any delivery system is helpful to the extent it can make the delivery mechanism better through improvement. Whether mobile learning is better or worse than traditional delivery is the same argument that has been going on with on-line versus traditional. I think the most important thing to consider is that learning has become and is becoming even more personalized. The class is designed in a way to cater to each student. This is good because it allows students who are many times 20 years younger than their instructor the ability to learn in a format that works best for them (i.e. multi-tasking, technology, audio/video based, etc.). Personalization of instruction may remove age, learning preferences and cultural biases that all teachers may innocently include in their course delivery and approach. Because of this personalization, I think the teacher needs to choose the assessment process that is the most helpful to the instructor. Teachers are as different as students.

What changes with mobile learning…

There is no doubt that there are new pedagogies with mobile learning that do not exist in traditional delivery. We may want to consider these approaches when we are specifically evaluating a class that uses mobile learning. Mobile learning does some things that traditional did not and visa versa. However, we may want to look at mobile learning from these different perspectives and incorporate this in our assessments.

Mobile learning might additionally want to evaluate:

• Was the technology available (especially in regards to network connectivity)?
• Was the performance of the technology acceptable?
• Does it work on a variety of hardware platforms?
• Was the class truly mobile and did the mobility factor meet the course learning objectives?
• Did the mobile technology support mobile learning elements (video, phone, audio, GPS, etc.)?
• Many more could be added here….

So what?

What do you think? Do you have some thoughts on mobile learning effectiveness and assessment?

Send a comment.

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