Developing M-learning
Pedagogical and Design Perspectives
Mike SharplesKodak/Royal Academy of Engineering
Educational Technology Research Group
University of Birmingham
An Alternative History of Computers and Education“Imagine having your own self-contained knowledge manipulator in a portable package the size and shape of an ordinary notebook. Suppose it had enough power to outrace your senses of sight and hearing, enough capacity to store for later retrieval thousands of page-equivalents of reference material, poems, letters, recipes, records, drawings, animations, musical scores, waveforms, dynamic simulations, and anything else you would like to remember and change…
Alan Kay
The Dynabook
…the Dynabook is now within reach of current technology.”
Alan Kay 1976Learning Research Group
Xerox Palo Alto Research Centre
Ingredients of a Dynabook
•Handheld multimedia hardware
•Object-oriented software
•Wireless communications
•Personal mobile learning
Evolution of Hardware, Software and Communications
1970’s Dynabook ideaAlto
Smalltalk
1980’sXerox StarApple LisaApple Macintosh
C++
1990’s Windows PCsLaptop PCsPDAs
Java
2000’sWireless PDAs
ArpanetEthernet
TCP/IPAnalog cellular radio
Worldwide webDigital cellular radioWireless LAN
CORBA Bluetooth
Evolution of Learning Theory1970’s Discovery
Learning1980’sSituated learning
Constructivist learningCollaborative learning
1990’sProblem-based learningLifelong learning
2000’sInformal learningContextual learning
Lifelong Learning
• Train the workforce to adapt to a rapidly changing world
• Empower children and adults to manage, share, and enjoy their own learning in a variety of contexts throughout their lifetimes
Learning Projects
• A typical adult undertakes eight personal learning projects (lasting seven days or more) in a year– Computer package, foreign language, sport,
home repair, cooking etc.
• Less than 1% are for formal credit Tough, 1979
Informal learningGiasemi Vavoula
• 12 “learning intensive” adults
• Kept diaries for 4 days
• 118 self-reported learning episodes (2.5 per person per day)
– 58% pre-planned, 42% serendipitous
– 44% alone, 56% with others
Survival
Leisure
Selfimprovement
Work-related At work siteElsewhere
11%
15 %
22 %
33 %18 %
Contextual learning
• Context is not simply a function of time and place
• Also involves:– Trajectory: how did I get here? Where am I
going?– Intention: what do I want to get out of this
situation?– Negotiation
Art Gallery Visitor
NewTechnology
• User centred
• Personal
• Networked
• Portable
• Ubiquitous
• Durable
NewEducation
• Learner centred
• Individualised
• Collaborative
• Situated
• Ubiquitous
• Lifelong
NewEducation …Technology
• Learner centred
• Individualised
• Collaborative
• Situated
• Ubiquitous
• Lifelong
• User centred
• Personal
• Networked
• Portable
• Ubiquitous
• Durable
The Challenge
To design personal learning assistants based on sound educational design combined with good engineering
Technical Issues
• Contextual awareness
• Interaction and interface design
• Handwriting recognition
• Speech recognition
• Weight and battery life
• Seamless integration of high-speed communications
Learning Issues
• From situated to mobile learning• Ad hoc collaboration and informal
interaction• Context-aware devices: more sophisticated
notion of context• Pervasive learning medium• Support for learning projects• Lifelong learning support• Ownership• Disruption of classroom learning
Conclusion
•Designing the technology is (now) fairly straightforward
•Designing and managing the learning is going to be hard