Mobile Phones in education
As an iPhone user, I have experienced some of the benefits and problems with using this technology. My uses for this device are not limited to texts and calls, I also use it to:
- dictionary - Australian version
- camera - take/edit photographs, videos and voice memos
- clock - daily reminders and calendar reminders
- weather - local area and other states
- search - yellow pages and maps
- banking - transactions and bills
- calculator - basic and scientific versions
- NASA - photographs and information
- games - sudoku, crosswords, memory and hangman
- recipes - find specific ingredients (no dairy/nuts/etc) and healthy options
- lifestyle - exercise regime and daily total
- literature - magazine and books
- communication - facebook, email, university website and group text
My latest novelty is an application called "ClassDojo". This application is linked to a webpage I have saved on my computer. With this I can create a virtual class enrolment and behavioural points. With the mobile phone, I can allocate positive or negative behavioural awards which are reflected on the computer version. I can choose to tally these over a day, week, or monthly basis. Students can be sent in invite to monitor their progress with these points also. I look forward to using this program in a classroom setting, to view its impact on student behavioural improvements.
These are only a sample of what can be used with this device. There are a vast range of educational applications available for download on the iPhone. I would use the mobile phone in my classroom for activities like:
- reading - downloading books which are not available in the library
- searching - information and pictures in specific areas like Google or NASA
- documenting - procedures, experiments, camps, excursions, etc can be documented through the various tools like camera, voice memos and text notes
The down side to using this technology in an educational environment is the potential for students to be distracted and off task with aspects of the device being in the hands at times of specific activities. This presents the problem of students messaging or playing when they should be reading or searching. Another problem is the size of the screen, which may impact on students' vision with long term use.
I have explored this useful tool in two previous blog posts:
No comments:
Post a Comment