Day 1 – My m-Learning
Sorry this is a little late.
I don’t do a lot of m-Learning right now simply because I have a hard time reading things on my small screen. I had tried to do some of my WebCT readings on my Blackberry, but it can get frustrating as I am scrolling back and forth a lot. I have found that doing discussion posts are fairly easy as the screen tends to work better on my device. I think the main reason why I don’t do a lot of m-Learning when I am commuting on a bus, for instance, is that I find that it can distract me from what is going on around me, so I tend not to do it a lot. If I am a passenger in a car, I am more likely to do my discussions on my Blackberry.
Juliana.
Posted in: Week 11: Mobiles
David William Price 10:32 am on November 15, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Interesting post!
As you point out, small screens are not great for doing a lot of reading… BUT they can work for content and tasks that fit the screen size and interface inputs of your device, such as reading and commenting on discussion posts.
The key strategy of a multinational I interviewed about m-learning was the decision to focus on bite-sized pieces of information to support a learner when they’re just about to deal with a problem (just before a client meeting) or are in the middle of solving it.
I’m curious about your concerns of being distracted while on public transport. What do you focus on while commuting on a bus? Why is that important to you? One of the characteristics of m-learning is that it has to cope with environments that provide short amounts of time and involve a lot of distraction.
Juliana 1:25 pm on November 15, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
When I’m commuting on a bus, I usually don’t do much. I’m fine with watching the scenery go by. It is usually my time to decompress and relax after work. If I do need to read anything for school, I usually print my articles and papers out and read them. By printing things out, I can make notes in the margin or highlight things. I know it isn’t good for the trees, so I try to always double-side and only print out those things that I really need.
My other reason for not wanting to be too engaged with my mobile device is that I see the effects of that in my co-commuters. I have found that people who are to engaged with their mobiles tend to be distracted and inadvertently discourteous to their fellow commuters. They don’t move out of the way or give room to people.
Another issue is that you can make yourself a target for thieves (or worse) when you are working with your mobile device. As a woman, I unfortunately have to be aware of these things. I am always envious of men in this respect because they don’t have to worry about this issue (at least not as much 🙂 ).
When I went to a self-defence class, that was the first thing that they told us…don’t be distracted with your mobile device. They said to always be aware of your surroundings because you never know who is watching. I myself have snuck up on many of my friends who were distracted by their mobile devices. They didn’t even see me coming until I was right in front of them.
While I may be one of the few who may feel reluctant with using mobile devices while commuting, I do think that it is a good technology that would need to be developed further. Bite-sized information does need to be made available so that it can be easily accessed through mobile devices. I will speak more on this in my Day 2 post.
Juliana.