Day 4 – Changes
Many institutions are taking advantage of teaching and learning activities that are now available as a result of the exploding mobile market. These offer creative ways to engage and interact with students. As I lecturer at a tertiary institution, I would love to take advantage of these opportunities, however the cost of mobile gadgets such as the iPods, iPads and iPhones is a great deterring factor. If the costs of these devices are lowered then more students would be able to purchase them and the teacher would be in a better position to effectively integrate these into the teaching and learning experience.
Keisha
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Everton Walker 9:24 pm on November 17, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Keisha,
I am of that view too. Our students are struggling to even purchase relatively cheap textbooks, let alone those expensive gadgets. For now, I guess we can only say “what if”
Everton
David William Price 6:37 am on November 18, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Why do students need iPods, iPads and iPhones? Even simple mobiles have plenty of learning potential. Refurbished gadgets tend to be a lot cheaper, and service providers like Rogers, Bell, Telus, etc. have crate loads of old mobiles that are traded in. What do they do with them? Would they be wiling to make them available cheaply or for free?
One of the struggles in putting together this week’s materials was the temptation to focus on smartphones. Smartphones are only one version of mobile devices. Is it necessary to pursue the latest technology? If simple phones offer the same affordances, why not take advantage of them?
hall 10:01 am on November 18, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi Keisha,
Mlearning (Mobile learning) is becoming more popular through the development of new and unique mobile devices such Blackberrys, iPhones, and iPads. But the growth of this learning in across the globe is still uncertain. Many students are struggling to pay their school fee (tuition fee) so as to be still enrolled in a programme. Hence I do not see students especially in the developing countries affording the purchase of mobile phones.
David William Price 11:45 am on November 18, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
But… statistics show that students in developing countries are far more likely to have access to mobiles than to computers (2.2 billion mobiles vs 11 million PCs). Mobiles represent the main form of communication and learning for semi-literate people in developing nations. Mobiles are a key way of learning English for Bangladeshis, a key form of communication and learning for disadvantaged kids in South Africa, etc.
hall 3:56 am on November 19, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
Hi David,
I agree with that statistical report on 2.2 billion mobiles vs 11 million PCs. I notice most people use their phones for communication purposes not for academic. You view this site http://mobithinking.com/mobile-marketing-tools/latest-mobile-stats
David William Price 7:20 am on November 19, 2011 Permalink | Log in to Reply
In developing countries, mobiles represent their only choice for accessing learning, such as BBC’s Janala or Urban Planet’s English or in South Africa, using MXit social networking to access novels, magazines or homework help.
Learning is not monopolized by academic study… in many developing nations, there is no real academic option anyway. The question then becomes how to make learning available to help people improve their lives. In Bangladesh, for instance, knowing English is considered a major step towards getting completely different types of jobs… jobs that offer different levels of income and advancement.