Deltecs Infotech

What is the whole buzz about M-Learning??

Read below a small excerpt to have a brief understanding of mobile -learning and its impact in today's world.

By Joseph Rene Corbeil and Maria Elena Valdes-Corbeil

Jason, a 19-year-old college freshman, woke up early Friday morning to download this week's U.S. History podcast to his iPod. As he got into his car for the one-hour commute to campus, he put on his earbuds and began to listen to his professor's test review session. The lecture ended as he entered the student parking lot.

Before exiting the car, Jason received a text message on his smart phone from Paula, his study partner. She had some questions and wanted to meet up with him in the library before the test. He pulled out his laptop and backpack before locking the car door. By the time he reached the library, Paula was already connected and online at her favourite table. She was busily transferring the professor's lecture notes from the course Web site to her pen drive. "What's the answer to question number three?" she asked as Jason sat down.

"I don't know," he answered; "Why don't you Google it to find out?"

"I've got a better idea," she responded. "Why don't you IM the professor? He's online right now."

Professor Davis was on his way back to his office from Media Services when a familiar chime let him know that someone was IMing him. He pulled out his PDA and read the message. With stylus in hand, he typed the response, "Call me." Ten seconds later, his cell phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Hi, Dr. Davis. Jason and I are in the library and we are having a hard time answering question number three."

"Are you in front of your computer?" Dr. Davis asked.

"Yes, we are."

"Go to this week's lecture notes and review the section on Western Expansion. You'll find what you are looking for there."

"Thanks a lot," Paula answered. "We'll see you in class."

Jason, as well as most of today's college-aged students, is a product of immersion in the technological advancements of the past two decades. These students are what Marc Prensky calls "digital natives." Raised in a ubiquitous technology environment, this new generation is accustomed to the "twitch-speed, multitasking, random-access, graphics-first, active, connected, fun, fantasy, quick pay-off world of video games, MTV, and Internet." Today's instructors, if not already familiar with the digital language of their students, must learn it to maximize learning and access to learning.

Ray Schroeder, editor of the Online Learning Update blog at the University of Illinois at Springfield, predicts that over the coming year, mobile learning will expand and evolve dramatically. He points to the term "podcasting," the New Oxford American Dictionary's Word of the Year, as evidence of this growth and predicts that new podcasting features will be exploited for e-learning in an expanding array of mobile devices. As a result, Schroeder predicts, e-learners will no longer be chained to their computers and network connections; they will be learning while hiking in the mountains, strolling on the beach, or jogging along a city street.

Source: www.educause.edu