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mLearning: Mobile Devices As Research and Teaching Tools

Chad M. GesserAssistant Professor of Sociology

Owensboro Community and Technical College

Source: image courtesy of Prescott

Chad M. GesserAssistant Professor Sociology

Owensboro Community and Technical College

• Each Fall and Spring semester I teach 5 sections of Introduction to Sociology, and one of the following: Modern Social Problems, Inequality in Society, or Sociology of the Community. In the summer I teach two Introduction to Sociology courses. I have approximately 150 students per semester, and about 50 in the summer.

• I am married and have three children: Jackie (10), Josie (6), and Michael (2). My wife is a local immigration attorney.

• My current interests include web 2.0 in the classroom and the community, mlearning (mobile learning), civic engagement, and content relevant to my Sociology courses.

• I've passed through a tremendous amount of change since our Laptop4u program in 2006

Source: "Internet for the Masses", The Economist, September 2009

Source: "Chart of the Day: Smartphone Sales to Beat PC Sales By 2011", Business Insider, August 2009

how it can be applied in the classroom,

Source: "In Rural Africa, a Fertile Market for Mobile Phone", New York Times, October 5, 2009

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_learning

What is mLearning/mobile learning?

Source: Sharples, Mike, Josie Taylor, and Giasemi Vavoula. 2006. “A Theory of Learning for the Mobile Age” http://mlearning.noe-kaleidoscope.org/repository/TheoryOfLearningForMobileAge.pdf and

http://www.lsri.nottingham.ac.uk/msh/Papers/Theory%20of%20Mobile%20Learning.pdf



Source: "Are You Ready for Mobile Learning?" Educause Quarterly, Volume 30, No. 2, 2007


Source: "Are You Ready for Mobile Learning?" Educause Quarterly, Volume 30, No. 2, 2007

...cont'd

Source: Community College Survey of Student Engagement http://www.ccsse.org/

Source: Chickering and Gamson, "Seven Principles For Good Practice in UndergraduateEducation"

"Seven Principles For Good Practice in UndergraduateEducation"

What types of consumption/production devices are we talking here?

• ipod/itouch• mp3 player• Personal Digital assistant• USB Drive• e-book reader• cellphone -> smartphone• tablet pc• laptop• netbook• ipad

What type of content are we talking? What can be produced?

• text (documents and messages)• image• video• audio

Source: Educause Center for Applied Research: "The ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, 2009"





Source: "Cellphones Now Used More for Data Than for Calls", New York Times, May 13, 2010

Source: 2010 KCTCS Fact Book

Source: 2010 KCTCS Fact Book

Let's focus on handheld devices

Source: "iPhone Textbook Apps Just Keep Coming", Chronicle, Aug. 13, 2009

To digest information

Source: "Text2Teach: Empowering Classroom Learning Through Mobile", Mobile Behavior, August 11, 2009

To digest information

To produce information

• webcam• microphone• camera• text editor• data/internet

connection

Producing Content• The Sociology Blog

• Cinchcastso Test 3 reviewo Puff the Magic Dragon

• Qik

• YouTube

• Ustream

• Wireless Owensboro

Communication• Facebook Fan Page

• FriendFeed (was used in Fall 2009, purchased by Facebook, so I abandoned it for fear it would shut down mid semester)

• Email

Consuming Content• Google Reader

• Apps available via smartphone

Personal Learning Network

• Twitter (personal learning environment/network)

Examples

Use of the Facebook Fan Page Results Spring 2010



"I LOVE LOVE LOVE using Facebook with school. It is a terrific idea because you can subscribe and have alerts the min they happen not to mention I check FB a ton anyway so being able to see whats going on in a class is a HUGE plus. Great idea Prof. Gesser! Pass it along to other teachers you are sure onto something!"

What were the pros/cons regarding the use of Facebook. Do you have any suggestions?

"It was great to be able to do more than one task at one site! When checking your facebook for friends info and updates, the facebook updates from Sociology kept you abreast of what was going on in class. I thought it was an excellent tool!!!!!!!"

"The pros and cons of using facebook allow you to get class updates at a quicker pace. I have sms messages from facebook sent to my phone, so i get them immediately. I don't see any cons to using facebook at all. I think more classes should."


"I do not have a Facebook account, and I don't plan on getting one. however, in Chad's class, I think he relied to much on his sites. We had to get a gmail account. He posted stuff on twiiter, face book, and the sociology website. I am currently taking six class, and i do not have time to constantly check for updates on so many different webpages. If I couldn't find the information i wanted on one site I had to go to another. It was frusterating. I suggest one page for all info and updates."


Perhaps one of the more difficult things I had to do this semester was to tell students the blogs and the Fan page were going to go away.

What are the implications of this approach for busting down that 4th wall, service learning, lifelong learning?

Is there a crossover between desktop PC, laptop, and mobile? What is the integrated strategy?

where does engagement and connection fit?

Let's not forget Blackboard functionality

Chad M. GesserAssistant Professor of Sociology

Owensboro Community and Technical [email protected]: @profgesser

New Horizons: Relevant Presentation Bookmarks

Extensive mLearning/mobile learning resources( http://delicious.com/gesser/mobilelearning)

Educause: Handheld and Mobile Computing Resources

mLearning: Mobile Devices As Research and Teaching Tools