Journal 7

Envisioning the Future of Education: Learning While Mobile., Mark Van 'T Hooft. Learning & Leading with Technology, Volume 35, Number 6, March/April 2008

In today's society, we are in constant contact with technology. On a daily basis, we have continuous access to the tools of technology - cell phones, media players and wireless computers. Students are learning as much outside of the classroom as they are inside the classroom. They are able to personalize their education as well as collaborate with their peers in ways never before possible. Technological tools allow students to be both static and mobile, and they also allow opportunities of both formal and informal learning.

MyArtSpace is an excellent example of a mix of both formal and informal learning while allowing students to be both static and mobile. Students discuss an open-ended question in the classroom then travel to the local museum to explore the answers to the question. At the museum they use mobile phones to collect representations from the museum that support their answers, then store them in an online gallery. The students can then access, modify and share their web galleries with peers.

Frequency 1550 is another amazing project that utilizes cell phones equipped with GPS devices to enable students to learn in new ways. The students compete to find a special medieval relic hidden somewhere in their city. The students compete against each other and use strategies to "win" this game all while learning and actually living history and exploring their community.

These are awesome examples of combining static and mobile learning along with formal and informal educational opportunities. The challenges to this type of education are familiar to out technological era. The participation gap caused by unequal access to technology is quite broad and is yet to be slimmed. The transparency problem makes it difficult to point out to students the many ways that media shapes and causes biases in the students' world. There are also challenges in ethics as well as fear of the unknown. Overall technology has and will continue to become quite an asset to educators.

Question 1: How will I prepare and educate my students concerning the Transparency Problem?
Answer: I think that just pointing out the media biases may be enough for older students to understand that they need to form their own opinions. Showing the discrepancies between true life and the portrayal of how life should be lived by the media may also be helpful.

Question 2: How will I combine both static and mobile learning in my classroom?
Answer: I think educators that stay on top of current happenings in their field can certainly discover and invent many ideas to keep education both static and mobile. I also think that informal and formal learning are both necessary to truly learn most subjects.