Day 2 – Mobile Apps
I think a well designed Apps can be quite useful, but unfortunately I have a Blackberry and there are not a lot of apps available for this device. I had a quick look at the How Stuff Works app as I have often used this site for my teaching, but unfortunately it was not available for the BB, so I couldn’t try it out.
I did try a free app for BB which is called Moo Math Lite. I thought it was a good app for math drills. I think it would a good app for young kids to practice their skills. It was easy to use and had enough of a game interface to make it engaging for kids. You can see the numbers easily on the screen and it has some music and sound effects which can make the app interesting for a young child. This app clearly does not teach math skills to kids, but it does allow them to practice their skills and so it would be a good supplement to traditional math lessons.
I am also in the midst of trying out BlackBoard mobile learn, but I am having some issues getting it to work on my BB. I will let everyone know what I think of it once I get it to work.
Juliana.
Posted in: Week 11: Mobiles
bcourey 3:13 pm on November 15, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I am looking forward to exploring some of the apps you mention Juliana for the BB – My biggest frustration is that my BB is owned by my employer – they monitor my data usage and when I am out of the country I cannot use it unless I am prepared to pay the huge roaming charges…and there is something creepy-feeling knowing that they can check my BB at any time – so my Twitter and Facebook use is only for professional networking just in case! And I do really like my Evernote app since I use it constantly on all of my devices. I will take a look at some of the other apps tonight!
Brenda
Juliana 12:05 pm on November 17, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I understand the creepiness of the employer watching over you. Truth be told, if you are using a work computer, laptop or mobile device, the employer has the right to monitor your usage, no questions asked. They can monitor all your emails and other communications, so you do need to be aware of this.
Juliana.
Everton Walker 10:12 pm on November 15, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Juli,
I would be happy to know when you found out. Do we have to use the apps on the mobile for it to be considered mlearning? or even if it is transferred it is classified as that? What if I bluetooth graphics from my BB to laptop for class; or transfer a few videos, is it still mobile learning?
Everton
David William Price 10:15 pm on November 15, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
There is a debate… some see m-learning as learning using any kind of mobile device regardless of circumstances. Other see m-learning as learning while you’re roaming and depending on devices while you’re out in the world, untethered. Which do you think makes most sense and why?
Juliana 12:16 pm on November 17, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I personally am not a big user of Apps and I don’t consider it to be the only mode of mLearning. I would say the ability for me to access the Weblogs and Moodle make it more of an mLearning experience for me. My viewpoint is that mLearning is any learning that can be done by using a mobile device. The luxury of this type of learning is that it can happen during anytime.
Future updates that I would like to see with mLearning is having immediate notification of replies to my posts in WebCT. I would like the flexibility of replying to those posts much in the same way as I do with my emails. May be this is ability is already present, I don’t know. As can be seen through my various posts, I am not a huge mLearner. If this capability is already present with WebCT, I would love to hear about it 🙂
Juliana.
David William Price 10:14 pm on November 15, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Your Blackberry experience exemplifies the issue of multiple platforms… how does a venture choose which platform to focus on? What happens to your learning venture when that platform loses favour in the market? The multinational I spoke with focused on BlackBerry for their pilot… but it seems that they may be looking elsewhere for future projects.
Juliana 12:29 pm on November 17, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
My sense is that many people just don’t want to develop Apps for BB. I don’t know if it is a function of the users or if there are technical issues with the device itself. For instance, if I am typical of most BB users then I wouldn’t get an App unless a) it was useful b) free. I feel that I have already spent enough on my phone and frankly spending more money on Apps wouldn’t be feasible unless it is especially worthwhile. Also I find that many Apps have a tendancy of trying to access different other applciations that they really shouldn’t have to (ie. GPS etc.), which drain battery power.
Juliana.
David William Price 12:47 pm on November 17, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hm… that’s an interesting point about not wanting to spend $$ on apps. Are BB apps more expensive than the ones at Apple (a few dollars to $50)?
How does this make you feel about the potential for developing a learning venture and getting paid for it?
Juliana 3:40 pm on November 17, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
I can’t answer that well myself. I don’t have an iPhone and I don’t know many people who have one right now. Most people I know have a BB.
As for your second question, if I have the opportunity to develop a learning venture and get paid to do it, I would be more than happy to do it. In some ways that is why I am in this program and it is one of my interests. I would like to see that the technology and applications that we develop for education get used appropriately. Too many times things have fallen flat because the correct questions were not asked.
To give you an example, I did a survey about my experiences with the BEd program. I can’t remember all the questions that they asked, but I do remember that they didn’t really ask about things that weren’t covered well by the program. I remember giving them an earful about how there should be more emphasis and support on classroom management skills and some other gaps that I experienced.
Juliana.