Mobile+Learning+for+Secondary+Students

Mobile Learning in the Secondary Education Setting

Created by Nick, Meg, and Jeff

Mobile learning can be defined as students learning in an environment that is not limited or tethered to the traditional classroom. It can also be defined as students using the latest technology to enhance their educational experience and take advantage of opportunities that were previously nonexistent. College students have become very familiar with the idea of mobile learning, as most graduate students clammer for hybrid or online classes (such as this one!). However, what can mobile learning offer for the middle or high school student? The answer to this question can be found in Chapter 10 of __The World is Open__.

The Impact of Mobile Technology on Education

Chapter 10 provided an amazing breakdown of the ways that mobile (m) learning and ubiquitous (u) learning are revolutionizing the way that people of all ages learn. In today's world, "learning follows the learner," meaning that one can be learning wherever and whenever is most convenient for them (Bonk 293). Although laptops and smartphones were initially invented for businesspeople and other professionals, those tools are now becoming enmeshed in curriculums and classrooms around the globe. There are a multitude of uses for cellphones and smartphones to help students. Teachers and professors can have their students follow them on Twitter, receving reminders of upcoming quizzes, feedback on assignments, links to the Twitter feeds of famous authors or scientists, etc. (301) This promotes connectivity and a sense of community within the class even when all the students are outside of the classroom, immersed in their day-to-day activities such as working or studying. Cellphones can be used in classrooms for pop quizzes and polls, and students can check their grades on their phones to stay on top of missing or incomplete assignements. The school systems that encourage, rather than punish, their students for using mobile technology in the classroom and the frontrunners of a coming "quiet revolution." As Arthur F. Thurnau stated, a day will come when students will take out their smartphones, lay them on their desks, and peacefully demand that they be allowed to use them in class for learning (300). Bonk goes on to state that in ten years or less, "school policies banning cellphones will be laughable" (300). In other words, get on board now or get run over later.

Today's students and teachers live in a society that "increasingly relies on digital information" (307). Dictionaries, encyclopedias, tape recorders, slide projectors, etc. are a thing of the past. Now we text, Twitter, blog, podcast, YouTube, and Facebook. We are addicted to our smartphones, laptops, iPods, and Kindles. These same devices that help us socialize can be used to make us more intelligent and well-read than any other generation to come before, and open doors that were thought to have been sealed shut. Now, children in the poorest countries can have access to affordable technology that rivals (sometimes even surpasses) that used by students in the US. Thanks to the "One Laptop Per Child" initiative, "millions of cheap laptops are being produced for children in places such as Argentina, Libya, Rwanda, Peru, Brazil, Palestine, Nigeria, Pakistan, and Thailand" (321). The XO is cute, compact, and kid/environment proof and sells for around $180. That price is steadily dropping, though. If one is purchased in the US, it costs around $400, but that includes a second XO that is donated to a needy child in a foreign country. The video below sings its praises and shows how amazing this little technological miracle really is.

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The XO gives me hope that one day, every American child will be able to have a laptop like this to use at school and at home. American students would also have a use for the $19 "Pocket School" that Dr. Paul Kim plans on introducing to poor South American countries with a high population of illiterate migrant worker families (317). These devices are a combination iPod/videocamera/Kindle. They allow children to choose and listen to stories, learn the alphabet and vocabulary, and learn to enjoy reading and learning. These little devices, which cost no more than two large pizzas at Dominos or the average DVD, would be wonderful to send home with students in the primary grades, or students that are classified as ESL or Special Education. The possibilities for mobile learning are endless, and are only multiplying with the passing of each day, week, and year. In the words of Bonk, "now is the time for learning to move to the forefront of our lives" (326).

How Can Mobile Technology Be Used in Schools Like Mine? With the rapid development of mobile technology it causes one to think how it can be implemented and utilized in all levels of education. After reading chapter 10 I discovered creative ideas on how to do that at the secondary level. At the moment most K-12 schools ban mobile devices such as cell phones and ipods but soon they will have to embrace them. "In the midst of this m-learning explosion, many primary and secondary schools have held up temporary flags of resistance to such opportunities. Soon most of those flags and signs will come tumbling down."296. As these devices become "smarter" and more affordable they will become more prevalent in our daily lives. It is clear that as educators we need to figure out ways to use these technologies to engage their learners and make them more successful.

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Creating group twitter accounts allow students and teachers to stay connected and allow learning to go beyond the class room. The teacher has the ability to post information about class lessons or remind students of upcoming important dates. With the majority of students owning smart phones they can get the information instantly no matter where they are. Students also have an opportunity to respond or comment on the information that other students can also read. They can also use twitter to create small groups for projects or assignments allowing them to collaborate on-line.

Teachers could record audio or video of their lessons and turning them into podcasts. Students could then go home and download it from itunes to use as a study tool or in case they missed something during the lesson. It also gives students who were absent a chance to hear or see the same thing the other students experienced. Using video ipods helps students that are hearing impaired or that learn better through visual aids grasp the material of a lesson. Cell phones can also be used as a tool to take quizzes or survey the students on topics during a lesson. Students can use thier phones to check their grades or get notifications of missing assignments. The thought that the phone in their pocket contains more information than all the books in their class room boggles my mind.

The opportunities to use mobile technology in the class room will only become more available to teachers. Educators need to be creative in the ways they implement the use of these devices that will keep the students engaged and interested in learning. Soon almost all the students will have the tools to find any kind of information at any time so our focus should turn to teaching them how to use the resources available to find information.

"Evvvvvv-ery rose has it's thorn..."- Possible Issues, and their Solutions!

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In Chapter 10, Bonk does a great job of describing of mobile technology exploding into the educational scene. The trend has already begun and will definitely continue to grow as the technology becomes smarter and more affordable. ======

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I took a walk down the hallway of my middle school the other day after reading most of chapter 10. Coincidentally, I saw some of the mobile technology in action. In the cafeteria, a group of history students were recording debates with flip cameras in small groups and preparing presentations for their classmates. Down the hallway, two more groups of students were outside their classrooms doing research on new Mac Books. ======

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The use of mobile technology for educational purposes both inside and outside the classroom is only going to increase. Although there are numerous upsides, there are also many downsides that will need to be solved for mobile technology to reach its full potential in the classroom. ======

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In our current economy, most school districts cannot afford to be ordering massive amounts of new technology. The numbers need to fit the budget in order to get the new tools to the kids. ======

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Bonk write about the “XO” computer (AKA- “The $100 Laptop” or “Children’s Machine”). It is a sturdy, inexpensive computer that has made huge impact all over the world. “The XO is definitely one of the most unique computers ever designed and perhaps the most ambitious and educationally significant”. This would be a great start for school who are really struggling financially. ======

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Smart phones are growing in popularity and can definitely be used in class settings. The iPhone, LG Dare, and Voyager are all phone that Bonk writes about in chapter 10. They are basically mini computers that can give students seemingly limitless access to information. However, students also have limitless ability to communicate with their friends. Personal texting in the classroom is very distracting for the “texter”, the “textee”, the teacher, and everyone else. ======

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<span style="color: #1a603f; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman',Times,serif; font-size: 160%; text-align: center;">I think the solution for this problem varies by classroom. I would hold the students accountable for their actions and take away cell phone privileges from students who are texting each other. Eventually students will mature and understand the way to handle their phones in an educational setting. If two students pass a note to each other, should the teacher ban pencils and small pieces of paper? ====== media type="youtube" key="B7RALOghxj8" width="425" height="350" align="center"

Comments: I loved the point you made about students passing notes in class. Students (of all ages) will find a way to abuse the privledge of anything you give them. It's human nature to test the limits and some people never follow rules. It's almost unavoidable, but this should not be a reason for keeping technology out of class. If we took away everything our students use incorrectly from time to time, they wouldn't be allowed to use pencils, markers, rulers, scissors, glue, the bathroom, etc. I also agree that the "$100 laptop" would be a great building block for schools to start with. Nice Job! :) - Stacy I didn't realize how easy it is to use Twitter in the classroom. I liked the video, and how it showed that students AND parents can follow your updates to stay informed about what is going on in your class. I also liked learning that you can embed Twitter tools on webpages. My mind is zooming a hundred miles an hour thinking of all of the possibilities this opens up for next year! And, I do have to mention how jealous I am of whoever walked down their middle school hall and saw students working on brand new Macbooks! I LOVE my Macbook, and I wish that my school system would invest in Macs rather than pcs! I also had the same thought about the $100 laptop. If the technology is there for such a cheap price, then why don't ALL students have a laptop in America. We could save so much money by not paying for copies, paper, pencils, and textbooks! - Jaimie The middle school in my county has the one-to-one lap initiative taking place. My elementary school has also received a laptop cart for the 5th graders to share and I'm able to use them only if I sign them out and the 5th graders aren't using them first. While my students love using the laptops and not the "old computers", our issue is the loading time - it takes 20 minutes just for the main Windows screen to come up. So would purchasing $100 laptops for every student in my school be beneficial? Maybe, maybe not. What's the point of getting them if the majority of the class time is waiting for the laptops to load. However, if the correct wireless devices were installed in the building and the technology people could find the loading issue, then I'm all for the laptops! Less copies and being able to read students responses instead of decifering handwriting would be fantastic! - Meredith

I agree with comments made by Stacy and Jaimie. First, I never even thought about using Twitter in the classroom! The video clip that you included really helped me to see the possibilities. Second, the $188 laptop is awesome! I wish I could spill water on my key board without frying the internal components. I am however disappointed that these are only available to poor foreign countries. We have plenty of poor Americans that would really benefit from this technology. Third, loved the comment regarding students passing notes. It makes me wonder if the consequences for abusing technology should first start with consequences that do not include taking away mobile priviledges. I have revoked internet privililedges for one student this semester...perhaps I should rethink that. Kim I heard Nicholas Negroponte speak at a conference a few years ago. He explained that the reason he was not marketing his $100 laptop to the US is that most schools could afford laptops that provided more functionality. His intentions were quite noble but the project has not taken off as he had anticipated. I do not think he could forsee the explosion of smart cell phones. As those comments before me have stated, I also enjoyed seeing the video clips. They were well chosen and show the possibilities. Dr. Royer I think for our country to be taken seriously in the realm of education, the $188 laptop is overdue! Why spend money on a textbook that only has one, finite application when you could offer students a means to access the world? I'm with Jaime, the resources spent on things that will soon be considered archaic, i.e. pencils and paper, need to be focused on technology. I taught very recently with an overhead projector and the chalk board, not white board mind you. Relative to this newest generation of learner's that's like me learning cursive in the 3rd grade by someone writing in the sand! //**James**// I really found the video about how Twitter could be used in the classroom interesting. This would esentially elimate all flyers going home to remind students to turn things in or about upcoming events, projects, due dates. Think of the paper elimination. I also agree that cost is something that is holding back many counties, schools, teachers and students. But think of things that could be eliminated from the budget if the technology was provided. If textbooks could be acessed through the technology that would save counties a lot of money. These are the things that administators need to be thinking about and technology companies need to be advertising to push their sales to school counties. I like how you stated that right now schools ban mobile devices but soon they will have to embrace them. - Ileta R. //** Great point about teachers putting their lessons into a podcast or all of the students having twitter accounts to keep in contact. Gone are the days that students would be able to use absence as an excuse for not getting their work done. And as Dr. Royer has pointed out before, snow days would not longer be an issue. Learning could take place anywhere, not just in the school. Great video's to back up your points as well. Nice wiki :o) Aly Brabitz **// I am a huge proponent of twitter, and social media in general, in education. The uses are endless, from updating parents to tweeting links to news articles that you come across, it can be a powerful educational tool. I think of how I use it professionally. I am a member of a large group of Student Affairs professionals nationwide that constantly seek to update others on relevant topics and information through twitter. In fact every Thursday there is a twitter chat moderated that is based around Student Affairs topics for all to join in the discussion. As educators how helpful would that be? It is like weekly professional development without having to travel anywhere? Great job guys! -Brian <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I am yet to try twittering…or tweeting, but maybe it’s time I took a look. The video about twitter in the classroom was very interesting and informative. The texting video was really funny. I really think every teacher knows what the awkward lap look is about by now. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">I really think that having laptops and smart phones is a great initiative but I am also worried about the disservice that is paid to those students with great potential but no access because of the digital divide. <span style="font-family: "Times New Roman","serif"; font-size: 12.0pt; line-height: 115%;">Good wiki J

-<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 16px; line-height: 18px;">Kerra H