Mobile Learning

By Antonio Ugarte

Personal Learning Preferences

• When I first took this class I was not sure what to expect, but I ended up learning a lot about how I retain information best and I think I am a better student because of it. After taking the survey, it told me that I am a 3 active, 5 sensory, 3 verbal, and 5 sequential. It told me that I learn the most when I can see what we are learning and as long as it is in sequential order. I am a history major and I believe this is why I prefer to learn sequentially, because most history is taught that way. I do not think it changed the way I learn but it was helpful seeing the results. Being able to understand how I learn best allowed me to understand the most effective ways I retain information, and allows me to foster my study habits to my strengths.

Learning Pathway

• At the beginning of class I chose a learning sage because I wanted to be able to learn how to use these technologies on my own. From what I got out of the beginning of the class a learning sage was more concerned about their own learning, and I thought this would be more beneficial to myself. I thought this would be perfect for my style because I am not very familiar with technology. After this class, it was better to get a wide range of technologies instead of choosing just a select few. It allowed me to see what I liked and investigate it more deeply later.

Activities Completed• I liked asking questions on the forums on ilearn. Posing a

question to my fellow classmates benefitted everyone because not only did the question foster my own thinking but also the responses forced the students to actively participate in the discussion. This allowed the students responding to other people’s questions to seek out the answers and learn themselves. Whenever I would respond to a person’s question I believe I would also learn myself. With mobile learning, it was a little harder to test some of the things we were learning about because I don’t have technologies like a tablet or iPad. But the Predict, Use, and Evaluate fostered my learning and was the most beneficial activity in the mobile learning section and the class altogether.

iPod• The first mobile device we learned about was something very

familiar but I gained a far better understanding of it from this class. I thought the majority of this class would be about the iPod because of the class title but it was still interesting. After taking a look at the section, I tried loading files onto my iPod to see if it helped, which it did. The iPod could be a good replacement for a flash drive, if I needed it. Unfortunately, the file took up a lot of space so I did not keep it for too long. This helped my sensory learning because it stimulated my thinking and it allowed me to use my visual and audio learning. Being able to lectures and listen to them on the go made learning very convenient and accessible, especially as a busy college student this helped a lot.

Portable Tablet

• The second mobile device I explored was the tablet. I have seen the rapid popularity of these devices but I never really understood the importance of them. After this section, I could see why people bought these devices like the iPad. I think this device would be the most effective mobile learning accustomed to my learning preferences. Not only is it an active device where you participate in learning apps but it is also a very visual device. The games and apps on this device can be used to effectively learn and study for material. Something like a flash cards app could help when studying for finals. It would help you organize them all in one convenient place, which is the one drawback of the huge stacks of flashcards.

Podcasts• Podcasts would also be very helpful making lectures and

information more accessible. With companies like Apple broadcasting podcasts on iTunesU makes it even easier for people with Apple products gain access to a vast amount of information. I think this device would help an active learner because the person must directly seek out the podcasts and then take notes on the lecture. This could either be for a class or a project. People can take it on the go as well, so they can listen to lectures on the way home on the bus or in between classes. If a person listened to a whole series of podcasts, it could help them if they are sequential learners. Being able to follow a subject from the very beginning could be beneficial to any student.

My Experience

• The tablets interested me the most because it seems as if that is the modern toy, and who wouldn’t want an iPad? They can be used for pretty much anything, but also very effective for learning. Bringing a tablet on muni would allow me to type an intro to a paper while I was riding the bus home. Or the large amounts of apps that would be at my disposal would add to its value. Being able to download apps like flash cards or language lessons could help someone learn a lot. As much as I would like to use my iPod for learning, I would prefer to use it only for music. It is a good idea, but when someone like me has a lot of songs, I need all the space available for music.

Cont.

• I think the iPad would work best for my learning preferences or anyone’s. I think that one of its most vital reasons for existence is to be convenient for anyone who has it. It fosters to any type of learning preference and would be helpful because of its wide variety of apps. It is active because, it allows you to physically learn certain subjects and visual because it can show you terms and ideas right on the tablet. If someone downloaded a language app it would also be verbal because you would most likely have to repeat what the lesson was saying.

What I Learned

• I will continue to use my smart phone for things like searching terms and looking up places to go. It may not necessarily be academic, but it does contribute to my overall knowledge. Apps like Yelp allow a person to gain some sort of knowledge of a restaurant before they actually go. It takes away the spontaneity of discovering a place, but also will not disappoint you either. Seeing apps like flash cards is a great way to get studying in and it can be done virtually anywhere.

Cont.

• I will be using these devices when studying for my finals this semester, and if I need to use my iPod as a flash drive to show a presentation, I know it will be possible. After this class, I will probably not avoid any of these devices. I do not see the purpose of avoiding any of these devices because they are built for convenience. If I had the money for a tablet, I most likely buy one. I would stay away from a tablet though, because I believe the iPad has more value to it. They are more expensive but I could get more use out of them.