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