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MIT App Inventor Democratizing Mobile Computing. MIT Center for Mobile Learning Media Lab + CSAIL + Teacher Ed Program Led by Hal Abelson, CS Prof. Andrew McKinney, Director of Engineering Shaileen Pokress, Director of Education Adopted from Google in Fall 2011.
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MIT App Inventor Democratizing Mobile Computing • MIT Center for Mobile Learning • Media Lab + CSAIL + Teacher Ed Program • Led by Hal Abelson, CS Prof. • Andrew McKinney, Director of Engineering • Shaileen Pokress, Director of Education • Adopted from Google in Fall 2011
MIT App Inventor - Where? Both Formal and Informal Settings Since 2009, App Inventor has been taught to thousands of students through: • School-based programs (New CS curriculum in UK, AP CS Principles in US) • Technovation program hinges on App Inventor (girls around the world, ages 12 - 18) • Online courses for teachers and students • For a full list, see appiventor.mit.edu/teach
MIT App Inventor - Who? • Students from middle school through adulthood • Computer Science courses and also infusion into other courses (math, english, business...) • Teachers are eager for real-world experiences for their students. App Inventor = high engagement. • Equally interesting to boys and girls • Outcomes: Widespread adoption in variety of settings. Anecdotal evidence of learning outcomes (currently seeking research funding)
Challenges • App Inventor is transformative and engaging, but it does require a setup: • Best setup is Android device connected over wifi to a PC/Mac. • Students without a device can use the emulator. • Curriculum development: We would need lead-time to develop training materials specific to this initiative. • Localization is something we have been planning, but there is a time and money constraint.
Expectations 1. Activities: Teacher Training; materials for trainers to use in the field; localization 2. Timeframe: 6 months for materials, 6 months for localization 3. Cost: collaboration with MIT through a grant or gift, including overhead, to cover the costs of people and resources for the activities listed here. Estimate: 1 curriculum developer at 75% for 6 months 1 software developer at 75% for 6 months 1 project manager at 100% for 6 months