Journal 7

Envision The Future of Education
By Mark Van 'T Hoof

In today's world the use of digital tools are increasing and constantly changing. Technology had become very mobile. People take their digital tools and access with them everywhere they go. They bring their digital tools in the forms of cell phones, media players, and wireless mobile computers. This can put learning and formal education at odds, as more forms of learning continue to occur outside of the classroom. With the environment around us becoming more unpredictable, so is the learning around us.


What does it mean when one says, learning while mobile? Mobile learning is usually defined as learning with a mobile device such as a handheld computer or a mobile phone. Learning while mobile is different because it takes into consideration the aspects of mobility of technology and the learner and the constant mobility of knowledge and our society. It also takes into consideration learning as personalized, learner-centered, and situated in time and space, collaborative, ubiquitous, and lifelong.


Some examples of learning while mobile are MyArtSpace, which is a service for children to spread their learning between schools and museums; Frequency 1550, which takes learners out of the classroom to roam the city using GPS-equipped cell phones to download challenges; National Museum of National Science, which has a website that visitors can visit before going to the museum to create an itinerary that fits their personal needs and interests. The context-aware system can determine where the visitor is and is able to deliver the necessary information.


Unfortunately, there are always challenges that one may face. One has to be aware of the participation gap, transparency problems, ethics challenge, and the fear factor.
Teachers need to be able to teach new literacies that come with increased collaboration and networking when students are using mobile and connected tools.

QUESTIONS:
1. What does learning while mobile take into consideration?
a. It takes into consideration aspects of mobile learning such as mobility of technology and the learner, but goes a step further by looking at the constant mobility of knowledge and our society.
2. What are the challenges faced with learning while mobile?
a. They are participation gap, transparency problem, ethics challenge, and fear factor.