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Wire-less and other new technologies: relevance and applications in FE Bob Banks FD Learning Bob.Banks@fdlearning.com www.fdlearning.com. Managing ICT in the new FE: Meeting increased expectations. The Buzz. Using new devices to support learning. Mobile devices Interactive digital TV
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Wire-less and other new technologies: relevance and applications in FEBob BanksFD Learning Bob.Banks@fdlearning.comwww.fdlearning.com Managing ICT in the new FE: Meeting increased expectations
The Buzz ... • Using new devices to support learning. • Mobile devices • Interactive digital TV • “Information appliances” [Learning] devices [will] be as easy to use as such "information appliances" as watches, telephones, digital cameras, and compact-disc and tape players. (???) (after) Donald Norman “The Information Appliance (1998) “Any - time, any-place learning”
Technology for learning e-learning ...m-learning ...t-learning But is it learning ??
It’s about ... • Learning needs: Social, psychological, organisational factors. • Technology often used in different ways to those its designers envisaged …. • CF - email, the web, mobile phones, text messaging …..
Goals for a learning provider • Enhancing existing provision • More attractive, exciting … • Better learning • More flexible / better tuned to learners’ needs • Better retention • ………. • Enabling new provision • New audience • New kind of provision
What the technology can offer: 1 - Connected learning Laptop Classroom Desktop computer PDA Participants: Students Tutors Mentors Community members Community organisations Employers Work placements Managers Etc …... Network Mobile Phone (Text messages) Information Store(s) (VLE etc.) Etc…. Audio devices (Phone Etc.) Mobile Phone (WAP)
1 - Multi-modal learning • Access to the learning in a number of modes, depending on the learner’s circumstances and preferences. • Face to face explanation and discussion • Printed materials • Online materials and discussion • Mobile devices - materials and discussion • Enhancing existing kinds of learning - or totally new kinds?
1 - A supporting framework Accessible output for specific needs ? Games Consoles PDA Mobile phone PC Audio (MP3, phone …) Presentation & accessibility layer Content (e.g. learning materials) Services
What the technology can offer: 2 - A congenial “learning space” • Learning can be conducted in a “space” which • is in tune with learners’ preferences and culture • empowers them • supports them • meets their specific life and learning needs. • And the technology must “do its job”, in the context.
What the technology can offer: 3 - Support in situations which benefit from mobility • Learning and performance support for immediate work problems • Learning support in collaborative / mobile contexts • Learning “on the move”
What the technology can offer: 4 - And it’s managed …. • Coherent underlying support • Progression • “System” remembers and supports preferences • Can feed in to accreditation • Scalable • …...
Reminder: What activities make up learning? Information: Materials Discussion: Community Tracking and Management Reflecting and Planning. What to learn next?
Looking at support for …. • Learners • The learner taking a “course”? Or “just in time” learning? • Performance support? • Inter-weaving learning with work / life. Redefining learning? • The learner deciding what to learn next (Lifelong learning) • … and being enticed into learning. • ……. ? • Lecturers / Teachers: • Supporting learners • Constructing new learning experiences (“Learning Objects”?) • Supporting each other • …..?
“Demos” - Some examples • Materials - Young adults - skills for life • Management - Mobile markbook • Locating materials & collaboratively building new learning experiences - Mobile repository access • Discussion - Mobile messaging & dialogue • Drawing learners in / defining learning needs - - IDTV (interactive digital TV)
Example of materials E.g. …… Urban survival“… to help young people deal with the urban jungle and improve literacy and numeracy skills. When young people become more independent there are lots of rules and regulations to come to terms with and budgets to be balanced. CTAD have put together a short series of resources designed to be delivered on mobile phones or via handheld browsers.” CTAD (Cambridge Training and development) http://www.ctad.co.uk/m-learning The m-learning project http://www.m-learning.org/
Why Basic Skills ? “… one in five adults has less literacy than is expected of an 11-year-old” Skills for life “In 1996 … a quarter of nineteen-year-olds were functionally illiterate” Basic Skills Agency “Inertia and fatalism …are our chief enemies. We must be bold and imaginative to overcome them” Skills for Life
Some materials Demo...
Also - interactive phone / SMS
Materials - other scenarios • Performance / Field support • “Bite-sized” chunks / learning objects • Mobile gaming • “ Mobile games may do for the wireless Internet what e-mail did for the wired one. ….A recent study by Datacomm Research and Phoenician Ventures concluded that mobile games are the wireless Internet’s killer app, and that 3G handsets with color displays are its killer devices. ” • Audio
Mobile markbook - scenarios • Moving around classroom • Moving between classroom, staffroom, home • Sharing with colleagues • Messages to students / employers / colleagues, etc. • Etc ……..
Mobile repository access • Scenarios • Lecturers / teachers exchanging ideas. • An (online) community around materials sharing. • “Just in time” learning / learning experience construction. • Based on (more or less) “learning object” orientation
Interactive TV (1): Keep IT in the Family • An interactive quiz to motivate people to improve their IT skills, and to consider training options • For Telewest Digital Interactive Television (DiTV) viewers • In collaboration with Sheffield College - http://www.sheffcol.ac.uk/ Futurate - http://www.futurate.com/ go
Interactive TV (2) – Guardians project • Structured learning experiences “on top of” TV • Enrolment • Messaging • Calendar, notepad, news • Supported, managed learning through digital TV • Search and notification • http://www.fdlearning.com/guardians/
iDTV - Guardians Or - answer via SMS (or PDA) Different presentation layers (IMS QTI) Tutor view & Audit trail of learner activity.
State of the technology • Technology for m-learning is here - but • Not yet fully standardised • Multiplicity of devices - and fast-changing - hence adaptability of environment is important • Subject to limitations of devices! • Technology for multi-modal presentation is here - but • Not yet straightforward to deploy • Not yet clear which to choose • We have examples of practice built by technologists - but • Not yet grown out of learners’ needs(?)
Some challenges • Providing flexible learning & performance support rather than 30-hour courses (The new definitions of learning?) • Cultural & Business decisions around new kinds of offer / new ways of working • Managing delivery over multiple channels • Managing “learning objects” • Deciding which technology option to go with
Managing ICT in the new FE: Meeting increased expectationsWire-less and other new technologies: relevance and applications in FE bob.banks@fdlearning.com www.fdlearning.com Demos: http://www.ctad.co.uk/m-learning Example PDA & phone content. http://www.sheffcol.ac.uk/ http://kiitf.sheffcol.ac.uk/ IDTV (1) http://www.futurate.com/ http://www.fdlearning.com/guardians IDTV (2) Background: http://www.m-learning.org/ European m-learning project http://www.pjb.co.uk/m-learning/ m-learning forum / portal http://learning.ericsson.net/leonardo/ Another European m-learning project http://www.e-learningcentre.co.uk/eclipse/resources/mlearning.htm m-learning “news” portal. http://www.pjb.co.uk/t-learning/ IDTV learning forum / portal