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Along the lines of the discussions we've been having on the isites, mobile learning has major potential in the developing world. "Mobile phones are increasingly ubiquitous in poor countries, which now account for FOUR IN EVERY FIVE connections worldwide". This means that almost everyone owns or has access to a mobile phone. How can we leverage this reality? Well, we can't impose anything that requires a smart phone, since most of these mobile phones cannot access 3G or wifi networks. Perhaps we can start to send podcasts as voice notes? Audio wikis of information sent via sms? In-phone calculators for math homework completion? I think all we need is an educational system that supports this type of learning, and m-learning can possible change the face of education in the developing world. 

in response to Jen Lavalle's post about games having to go cross-platform to survive. Adobe, makes of the Flash platform, have announced they are stopping further development of the plugin for mobile devices. They are instead now going to focus on open standards (like HTML5), to allow content to be viewed on all modern devices (mobile and computers) with no plug in required. They will also focus on tools to allow developers to push content speciically to the app stores of today's most popular mobile devices. This is a good & bad sign for app developers who use Flash (lots of them, it's been an industry standard for years. Flash has suffered from terrible performance on mobile devices, so it's good to see Adobe acknowledging the need to do something different for their mobile strategy. But what this means for the tools developers will (need to learn to) use? TBD...

A few months ago, EDUCAUSE sponsored a "short course" on evaluating the effectiveness of mobile learning initiatives. This page contains a wealth of resources on mobile learning related to the course. Especially useful for classmates working on EDC term projects related to mobile learning!

This is a great article about the need to integrate mobile learning into mathematics learning. The article claims that right now there is a divide between personal experiences and mathematical problem solving that students learn in school. The article suggests much work and opportunity in using mobile technology to bridge the divide of formal and informal math learning, putting math learning into personal contexts. The article sheds light on how this will help students see mathematics as a discipline they will use outside of school. It is a very good, comprehensive look at the role technology can play in teaching math the "right" way.

Thestudy in this book compares mobile learning with the classroom learning, virtual learning, and performance support. Includes interviews from practiioners, thought leaders, and early adopters of mobile learning.

Does anybody have a copy of this book that I might be able to borrow?

UNESCO recommendations on mobile use policies in education. This is from a global perspective on using mobile technologies in the classroom. There is a link to the actual UNESCO policy draft.

Here's a link to a series of paper UNESCO has on Mobile Learning. The nice thing is that it even breaks Mobile Learning down intro different regions. It also looks at different initiatives from a policy perspective, and by looking at what can be done to support teachers/improve practice. http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/themes/icts/m4ed/mobile-learning-resources/unescomobilelearningseries/

I agree, great article about forthcoming UNESCO mobile learning policies and this exciting new educational area.

Cell phones are banned in NYC public schools, but it is the norm for students who attend schools without metal detectors to bring their phones anyway. If caught teachers are confiscating phones for up to a week, or longer, at their discretion. At schools with metal detectors small businesses have popped up around schools, storing students' phones for the school day for a small fee, similar to a coat check system. Instead of harnessing the power of mobile phones that almost every student already has, they are punishing them and/or causing them to pay money to keep them stored for the school day so that they can have them before and after school. I think this is a missed opportunity for the NYC school system not only because they are missing out on mobile learning opportunities with technology the district doesn't have to buy, but they could also be teaching the students responsible and appropriate use of mobile phones in public spaces.

This page has countless links on developing acceptable use policies for mobile technology, as well as examples of policies in existence, varying from traditional "no mobile devices" in school to BYOD related policies. It offers a broad view of what schools are doing with regards to mobile technology policy.

Mobile learning in some universities making gradually deeper impact. Through mobile learning the classrooms are becoming less about discovering information and more about collboration and knowledge creation. "Increasingly, this is just the way we do things" - Bill Rankin, director of mobile learning and an English professor.

In light of our conversation of mobile learning, this article provides insight as to the stationary nature of the use of mobile technology. Shadow Cities - a game that prizes 'on the go', 'real world' scenarios within the game, found that most people play mobile games in the spaces where they spend the majority of their time - especially the home, which means mobile games compete with traditional gaming devices. Anyway, some food for thought...

Jennifer, Thanks for sharing this. In this push for mobile, I guess it makes sense if you step back and realize that most of the gaming systems that people started using (PS3, Xbox, Wii) were not built for mobility or portability and perhaps they haven't realized they can "transfer" the gaming experience to anyWHERE? Or maybe it is that gamers are creatures of habit? or superstition (like baseball players who don't shave their face throughout the playoffs so as to not mess with the karma or mojo?) and don't want to upset the environment that they consider the best for their particular performance of the game? The commercial that Prof Dede showed with the Augmented Reality spin and where Shadow Cities is headed really is a whole new way of approaching gaming and I wonder if the same type of gamers who are traditionalists (sit at home and play) would be interested in this new type of mobile gaming or if it might just open up a whole new set of gamers - who despise the sedentary nature of traditional gaming systems - and push them to get involved?

"The report Pockets of Potential: Using Mobile Technologies to Promote Children's Learning, by Cooney Center Industry Fellow Carly Shuler, makes the case that our nation's leaders should not overlook the role mobile technologies can play, if well deployed, in building human capital and in helping to stimulate valuable innovation."

survey of kids' thoughts about mobile learning

This is an article on why the classroom PC is out and mobile learning is in, though challenges are expressed such as getting teacher's on board and properly trained on mobile devices. 

The author makes a case for mobile learning for professionals with the Android App - Google Goggles... are there other uses that people see of the app in the k-12 sector?

advantages and challenges of mobile learning

Fun illustration on mobile learning

getting started guide on mobile learning

We live in digital and mobile world. Mobile learning forces us to rethink how to best utilize our time in school. We can focus more on questions that require collaboration, synthesis, critical thinking and creativity, and not just memorization of facts.

This article highlights some schools that are rewriting their mobile use policies and some successes of bringing mobile technology to classrooms.

Afghanistan has launched a new literacy program that enables Afghan women deprived of a basic education during decades of war to learn to read and write using a mobile phone.

This is really deep, Janet. I sense that sometimes there's a double standard between our expectations of what children's education should be versus adult education. There's always push-back when we consider using mobile devices as a primary teaching tool for kids. But I sense there's less push-back when we offer it in adult education. Is this because we think adults can learn better on their own? Or perhaps teachers are important in children's socialization process? Or that education is a basic right for all children, but not necessarily for adults? At the core, these women were once children deprived of an education during their most formative years.

I really appreciate your comments on this topic, Pearl. And, like you, I wonder at the effectiveness of a mobile literacy program. But I also find it interesting that there is even an attempt to reach women who were deprived of an education earlier in their lives.