Techstanding: Instructional Challenge #1

The scenario

Each morning as you walk the hallways prior to first bell, you see your students' plugged in to their iPods, you hear them discussing the latest "castle craft conquest", you see cell phones put away in lockers, and you overhear discussions using terms like LOL, O.M.G. Your school's hallways are buzzing with energy. First bell rings. Students file into their seats. It's quiet. Books are pulled out. You realize the students have already tuned out.

The instructional challenge

Your instructional challenge is convincing your administration that you can recreate the hallway energy and students will still be learning.

My solution
Mobile Learning

Learning on the go is a trend that is being embraced more often than not. People of all ages are seeing the benefits of learning on the go. Not only people, but organizations as well. For the above challenge, I feel that mobile learning is the solution because students are more apt to embrace this type of learning simply because they would have participated in this type of activity while at home on their computers or their smart phones. As students are walking the hallways they can use their smart phones or other mobile devices to view reminder messages, confirm deadlines, and read administrative information. Two projects, among others, were developed to address the e-learning trend. The M-learning project, http://www.m-learning.org/, is geared towards providing interactive quizzes amoung other features. The MOBIlearn project, http://www.mobilearn.org/, which is geared towards the design and development of e-larning content. Therefore, the students in this challenge would have immediate access to educational information their teachers provide, which would keep them focused on their education while moving from room to room during the school day.

This type of technology would benefit the students in ways that they might not even recognise right away. They would be able to study on the go, confirm assignments on the go, etc. This solution would keep their minds from running wild and keep it on their education. I feel that students would be more focused, test ready, and more confident. Giving students access to educational material will enhance their learning and allow for a more comfortable learning experience.