Rachel Mobile Learning 2013

Adelphi University

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Mobile Interfaces and Design

Just like my classmates, I too have wondered when we would touch on this topic and I am glad we did. It is the perfect way to wrap up this course. Children, just like many adults, have a hard time using particular applications. I have had trouble with several applications that I have downloaded for my studies in speech language pathology as well as my clinical experiences. Some of the students I work with cannot figure out how to work the application or have a very difficult time using it. 

Jakob Nielsen’s article, iPad Usability: Year One, discusses the changes in iPad applications within the year. However, with all these advancements and upgrades in these applications, some problems arise. A common problem that has occurred with these applications is the “accidental touch” on applications. In some cases, it is very difficult to get back to the same page or spot on an application without having to restart the app itself. This occurs mainly because of how small the touch areas are in applications. I am one of these people. When certain things on websites are too small, its very easy to click on the wrong tab or button. This happens especially when I am on ecampus on Safari. I always end up clicking the wrong icons. As Nielsen mentions, there is an “increasing the risk of touching the wrong one.” This article also looks at research studies that were conducted on iPad applications and discuss the changes in each study. This allows readers to see how people who are unfamiliar with the iPad navigate through apps versus people who are relatively family with the iPad. Too much navigation, referred to in this article as TMN, also supports the main problem addressed by the author. When a person has to navigate or click multiple icons to get to one location, it becomes very tedious. Therefore, applications must be modified to allow for easy accessibility.  If we become more aware of these limitations, we can find ways to avoid them or make up for the items that the application lacks.

Van der Mere’s article, “Dad’s plea to developers of iPad apps for children,” emphasizes important concepts that we, as future educators, need to be aware of. The idea of affordance is important because, like Van der Mere says, “give the elements…a characteristics that indicates they are touchable.” If there is no indication or direction of what to, the student or child will just be staring at the screen waiting for something to happen. When the author mentioned the app “Talking Tom Cat,” I knew right then and there what direction he was going with that reference. Children automatically see an icon and click it and five minutes later you’ll realize that they just bought extras on the application that go right to your credit card. 

As a few of my classmates have mentioned already, applications that are free tend to have the most advertisements. Pandora, for example, is one of those applications. There are only so many skips you can make for songs and ads cannot be skipped. However, Pandora One doesn’t have advertisements and forces the listener to purchase the application rather than using the free one. This also applies to most free games on iPhones. I have had to call Apple numerous times to explain that children who use my iPhone or iPad have made accidental purchases so I can have the charge waived. This relates to the concept of “accidental activation” mentioned in Nielsen’s article. 

Applications for children should be designed differently from those for adults. There needs to be a distinction of buttons because if there isn’t, children will just keep tapping away and the charges will keep adding up.

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Visit Original Link

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For this assignment, I chose to review an application called “3D Brain.” It is available through iTunes and can be downloaded for free onto an iPhone or iPad. “3D Brain” was created in 2009 by Vivid Apps and AXS Biomedical Animation Studio for the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory DNA Learning Center. 

I chose this application because of its relevance to my studies in speech language pathology as well as its ability to target more than one age group. When I took my anatomy and physiology of the speech mechanisms course, I found myself looking for supplemental material to aide my studying and course work. Having applications such as “3D Brain” allows a student or teacher to analyze a 3D model of the brain and to study its regions, structures and functions. Being a visual learner, I feel that it gives you a realistic representation of the brain, as a whole as well as isolated segments. This application can be used to better understand the brain and how it relates to education and learning, speech pathology, psychology, health studies, etc. I feel that this application would be appropriate for high school students as well as college students (both undergraduate and graduate) and professors. 

The application itself is easy to use. When the application is open on an iPhone or iPad, a color coated 3D image of the whole brain is the first item seen. A toolbar on the right side of the screen allows for quick and simple navigation. If the icon labeled “structures” is selected, an alphabetized list of structures, regions, lobes and cortexes will appear in a drop down menu. For example, if “Broca’s Area” is chosen, the area will appear in a purple color on the brain. You can zoom in and out as well as move the screen left to right. The “Info” option on the toolbar provides information such as an overview, case studies, links, as well as associated functions, disorders, and damage. The only limitations that I noticed with this application are that it does not have a text to speech or read aloud capability and it does not have every part of the brain listed. However, all of the important parts of the brain are listed and explained with great detail. 

As explained in the introduction, this application can be used high school and professional studies. The interactive component of this application allows for a variety of views of the brain rather than a flat, black and white picture in a textbook or notebook. A reason why I really like this application is because it is constantly updated which allows for the most current information and research. A person using this application will be able to enhance the material present in a classroom or for an exam as well as visually understand the structural makeup of the brain. 

“3D Brain” can definitely relate to mobile learning today. From personal experience, I find that it is easier to download applications to help my studies when traveling rather than carrying all of my textbooks and notebooks. It is very helpful and allows the learner to have the “hands on experience” that we have explored in this course through our various readings and blogs. As we have learned throughout the course, mobile learning is becoming more and more prevalent in education. This application applies to the community of practice concept that we learned about. The study of the brain would be the common “concern or passion” and with this main focus, information and insight can be shared with other students or professors sharing this interest.  

As future educators, it is important to keep current with the most effective and beneficial learning modalities. iPads are becoming more common in classrooms and will eventually become the basis of most lesson planning. Applications must be explored by educators prior to student use. They must be easy to use and relevant to the designated material. Incorporating these hands on activities such as “3D Brain” will better enhance the overall learning experience. 

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Week 7: E-Reading and Tablets

The New York Times article, Math That Moves: Schools Embrace the iPad, is a well written analysis that discusses the particle and the possible. The possibilities that computers can attain seem endless. Yet, is it reasonable to do something just because you can? As pointed out in the article, there have been no studies to date that the use of iPads has achieved  the stated goal, that is improvement in academic performance. According to the article, it seems that phase of analysis is still in the planning stages. As Houghton Mifflin Harcourt said, “…It planned to compare the test scores of students using a textbook in digital and traditional book formats.” Particle considerations would include the cost which, given limited resources, requires a trade off. Will it be more iPads or more teachers? You can’t have both. Also, new software developments make greater demands on computers requiring updates. Compared to books, the initial cost of iPads and their anticipated future replacement with newer models is quite large. Also, iPads that would be taken back and forth to school might pose a potential risk for theft. In addition, there was nothing written in this article relating to the iPad being used exclusively for educational purposes. As it now stands, it seems that children would have a means to stay up late and communicate with their friends via the internet and Facebook. If incorporated into the school system, restrictions should be placed on which site and applications can be available to the students. 

Terje Hillesund’s article, Digital reading spaces: How expert readers handle books, the Web and electronic paper, is a lengthy and very technical analysis of an interesting concept. Based on data gained from a series of interviews, the author tries to answer the question, if and how do the various “text technologies” alter the way we read? Citing an earlier paper by Chartier in 1995, Hillesund takes up the point that, “…Texts apprehended through different mechanisms of representation are no longer the same.”  How verbal information is transmitted to the reader greatly influences the style of reading (“continuous" versus “discontinuous,” “shallow” versus “immersed”) and the degree of involvement of the reader (skimming versus analytical reading). The examples used by the author are situations that I easily identified with. I, too, feel that words committed to paper allow me to take notes and highlight important areas, thereby, actively engaging me in the process of reading. Similarly, the ability to skip around in computer based texts can be distracting even though that same quality enables me to pick and choose among the many options that are available among the internet. Although the author mentions the Kindle device, in the conclusion section the challenge of inventing a device for reflective reading (studying) and web browsing is stated. The Kindle’s ability to act as an ebook, without distracting pop ups and web browser capabilities in that portal, and its capability to separately browse the web seems to be the perfect answer to that challenge.

#week7 #response #mobilelearning

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Week 6 Augmented Realities in Classrooms

In both articles, Mad City Mystery written by K. Facer and Savannah written by M. Squire, the authors discuss the benefits of mobile gaming with regard to learning. It has become a modality in which students can enrich their educational endeavors and has enabled students to create their own unique learning experience. Collaboration and communication can be done within the gaming experience and it provides students an opportunity to test their ideas and thoughts through a variety of scenarios before doing so in real life. However, while reading this article, I started to think of some negative aspects of mobile gaming. I have learned in one of my elective classes, Dynamics of Substance Abuse, that video gaming and internet gaming can be just as addictive as smoking a cigarette. My fear is that the more younger students become involved in these games, the more dependent they will become on communicating through these devices. That is why moderation is key. 

I feel that a great way to monitor and limit use of these gaming devices is to have teachers limit and verify the applications before giving them to the students. As we have learned throughout this course, the incorporation of technology can be very beneficial, however, it must be utilized in the proper way to best aide the learning environment. Allowing the students to have this accessibility will promote the learning of new skills as well as their communication skills. As Facer stated in the Savannah article,“just-in-time learning, trial and error and participation in activities with more knowledgeable others.” Students can see what works and what doesn’t work in a given situation. In this article, the students use GPS and PDA devices for mobile gaming. This allows for gaming to occur on a variety of appliances rather than just one device. 

The Mad City Mystery article mentioned how teachers are “lagging” when it comes to social change. The reason for this, I feel, as seen by Apple Inc., there are new devices and new applications almost every week. It is hard to stay current with a device if a new one keeps evolving. There is more time spent on learning how to use these applications or devices rather than learning how to use them in lesson plans or classroom discussions. The article also discussed how students are able to incorporate higher level questioning to receive the same level answers. In order to complete the mystery or task, higher thinking must be used which promotes communication and collaboration with the students to arrive at a suitable answer.

In Jonathan Dame’s article on usatoday.com, “41% of college professors use social media  as a teaching tool…” One of the professors mentioned in the article stated that “My goal in all the classes that I teach is to get my students as comfortable as I can as quickly as I can.” The importance in this statement, for me, was that the professor wanted to make the students comfortable with their class material. Not all students feel that they can voice their opinion in class or feel that they are able to ask a question without fear of rejection or embarrassment. Therefore, an online outlet allows EVERY student to freely communicate with his or her peers. In large schools, it may be hard to communicate with all the students in your class. A lecture hall classroom can hold up to 50 students, but that does not mean all the students will know each other. Online discussions allows for every thought and opinion to be heard.

#week6 #mobilelearning

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Mobile Video Interview

Mobile Learning Course, Fall Semester 2013 Adelphi University

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#week5

In Adrian C. Mayer’s scholarly written article, The Significant of Quasi-Groups in the Study of Complex Societies, some of the social and economic aspects were surrounding the 1961 elections in the Dewas District of India. The author used those relationships as examples to further define the concepts of “sets” and “network” and related social science terms, as set forth by previous authors such as Barnes and Radcliffe-Brown. Although it takes place in India, more than 50 years ago, names and places can be changed to make them applicable for current day political science studies. For example, with regard to Mayer’s discussion of “action-sets”, the dynamics and characteristics described make local politics easily come to mind. State Senator Marty Golden represents my community in Brooklyn’s 22nd District and is a fine example. Some aspects of Mayer’s first criteria do not apply here. For example, kinship and religious affiliation are not consideration, nor should they ever be; one speaks to nepotism and the other goes against the concept of separation of church and state. The second feature that action-sets are not always based on group membership is seen in the fact that Mr. Golden has been elected numerous times with many people crossing political party lines to vote for him. The third feature of an action-set is also found, that is Mr. Golden has “paths of linkages” connecting him indirectly to his voters. This is done by his staff members (“intermediaries”). The fourth feature is also found, that is “there are no rights or obligations relating all those involved...” In other words, aside from supporting Mr. Golden, his followers are not bound to each other in any other way. For the final feature, however, neither Mr. Golden or any other elected official in any local or national office, can be responsible for the existence of the governing body. With his death or completion of his last elected term, the office and the responsibilities to the voters will still exist. Another “ego center” will fill his place. Although at times technically difficult to read, I nonetheless found this article to be interesting and informative. 

The article, How to Resume the Task of Tracing Associations, is a somewhat philosophical dissection of the term “social science.” Bruno Latour takes issue with the use of the term “social” as an adjective that helps to fill in the blanks that other disciplines (psychology, law, economics) leave when describing something. What he maintains as the proper use of the term, is something quite logical and yet something I have never thought about before. For example, the role of social linguists for some means using sociology to examine things left unexplainable by linguistics. In Latour’s words, the term “social” is not to be taken as a form of “glue” rather “it is what is glued together by many other types of connectors.” I thought this article to be interesting and found Latour’s reference to the Latin root “socius” to be ingenious.

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#week4 #mlearning

I must admit that as I was reading this article a recurring thought came to mind,  “consider the source.” I wasn’t surprised that Apple promoted so many wonderful educational opportunities that would benefit students, teachers, parents  and the rest of us. Actually, I’d be surprised if they didn’t. Yet, in talking about all of the advantages iPods had to offer there was thread that surfaced periodically: many students are not text savvy. The Modality and Redundancy Principles show that students learn better when online text is factored out of the equation. Will increasing reliance, and possibly eventual dependence, on multi-media presentations of educational materials lead to personal deficiencies in grammar and proper syntax? This might be hard to say and I suppose that the people at Apple would say they will have an app for that as well since there is an app for almost anything you can think of. 

A person’s full and dedicated involvement with a multi-media presentation should better assure greater returns. According to the Modality Principle, students learn better from presentations that feature animation and narration than those that from animation and online text.  However, “Audio does not require a listener’s full attention…”(p8) allowing them to do other things. We’d like to think that we can multi-task and do all things well but the truth is we can’t.  The option to listen to educational material while engaging in other activities is really more of a counterproductive distraction. Nonetheless, having grown up in the midst of these technological advances, my computers have been important allies to me in school. Although the earlier iPods did not have the multi-purpose features that would enable them to do the types of internet searches mentioned in the article, my iPad mini does and comes close to the iPod in portability.  Thank you, Steve Jobs.

The article, “Designing Mobile Communication Tools: A Framework to Enhance Motivation in Online Learning Environment”, was, at times, rather challenging for me due to it’s assumed level of reader computer programming knowledge. Nonetheless, there was a lot there that did catch my eye.  Bulk SMS messages not only fulfilled ARCS requirements but were also options I had benefited from for class assignments. The interactive capability which allowed me to communicate with my professor and receive almost immediate feedback and internet links for further information was extremely helpful. The personalized comments about my performance on tests and papers acted as another stimulus to enhance my performance on future assignments.

As the article “Use of Mobile Technology for Teacher Training” explained, most teachers are not using technology with their learning styles to its fullest potential. This made me look at how I utilize my own technological devices in almost all of my everyday life as a student. Teachers’ use of PDAs made it easier for them to keep track of grades, use a calendar to record important dates as well as write notes about their students. I do almost the same thing every day on my iPhone. My iPhone has the ability to access my school grades and assignments through e-campus and allows me to keep track of due dates for classes with my calendar app. When something is new to someone, it takes time to become acclimated or used to it. This applies to the use of the latest technologies. After all, change doesn’t happen over night. 

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9 Speech Recognition Apps For Your PC. (n.d.). InformationWeek. Retrieved November 24, 2013, from http://www.informationweek.com/9-speech-recognition-apps-for-your-pc/d/d-id/1061190

Applications that recognize voice commands and convert them to text. Brief descriptions of each of the 9...

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#mlearning #week4 #techreport

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apple vs android

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I am from the vibrant sun-kissed island of Madeira off the coast of Portugal, from the rich and soothing Sandeman port and carefully loving prepared homemade food. I am from the sun-bleached tera-cotta roofed cottages, echoing with the laughter of children. I am from the lovingly cultivated rose gardens, the treasured white aromatic orchids. I am from the joyful reassuring Sunday dinners and sun-friendly olive skin tone, from Celeste Soares and Celestina Soares and Fernandes. I am from the commitment to family and generosity. From Grandma’s “It is what it is” and acceptance of things and people as they are. I’m from Brooklyn, New York by way of Madeira Island, Portugal and from seafood filled cataplana and chorizo and eggs breakfasts. From the Grandmother and her five siblings who were orphaned when she was seven years old, her upbringing by a sad and weakened grandmother, and the uncle who rose to prominence as Chief of Police. I am from the albums filled with fading black and white photos, annotated family bible and gold filigree jewelry whose worth per ounce has a price but for us will always be priceless.

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When I went to the American Speech Language Hearing Association Convention this week, I went to an informational booth on electropalatography. This is not a picture from the convention, but this is what the use of electropalatography would look like. Electropalatography is a way in which a speech-language pathologist can look at the tongue contact of a client when he or she is producing speech. This can be seen with a computer program that requires a child to have a retainer-like application in their mouth, which is plugged into the computer. The sensors on the mold will track where his or her tongue is placed with particular sounds. It was extremely fascinating and I thought it would be something cool to share since this is a technology related course. 

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so true! 

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gotta love waffles 

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