Keynote paper: Unlocking the learning value of wireless mobile devices Adviser: Ming-Puu Chen Presenter: Li-Chun Wang Roschelle, J. (2003). Keynote paper: Unlocking the learning value of wireless mobile devices. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 19,

2 Abstract The lessons drawn from three well-documented uses of connected handheld devices in education - Research needs to arrive at a more precise understanding of the attributes of wireless networking that meet acclaimed pedagogical requirements and desires. - ‘pedagogical applications’ are often led down the wrong road by complex views of technology and simplistic views of social practices. - ‘large scale’ impact depends on the extent to which a common platform, that meets the requirements of pedagogically rich applications, becomes available.

3 Outlines Introduction Three classroom applications - Classroom response systems - Participatory simulations - Collaborative data gathering Lessons about connectivity Lessons about pedagogical technology Lessons about scale

4 Introduction The field of computer-supported collaborative learning has already successfully tackled two key concerns: control and representation. - The control led to a definition of three possible roles for the computer: (1) as tutor: an algorithm or artificially intelligent agent is predominately in control of the student. (2) as tutee: the student exercises control by programming the computer (e.g. with Logo); (3) as tool: teachers, activities and teams of students are the loci of control; the computer is a mediating object that is neither in control nor the object to be controlled. - The representation follows from the important of human-machine interaction in the pedagogical and social use of technology. (1) mediate social construction of deep understanding of a subject area. (2) used conversationally to support each other in a process of convergent conceptual change.

5 Classroom response systems (Classtalk) The learning process:  Teacher : pose a short answer or multiple-choice question  System: collects and aggregations every students responses  Students: hold individual handheld response unit and sent their response anonymously  Teacher’s machine: aggregates the students’ responses and presents them in a coherent form (histogram).  The teacher and students observe patterns in the variation of responses and use this shared point of reference to launch into pedagogical conversations. The pedagogical uses: -Monitoring students’ evolving understanding of challenging domain concepts. -Driving their small group discussions (peer instruction) -Reveal a high proportion of misconceptions in a classroom -Reveal a pattern of convergence towards the correct concept. -Formative assessment  student: receive more feedback -Embarrassment is reduced Three classroom applications

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7 Participatory simulations Students act as agents in simulation. Simulations enable students to model and learn about the many scientific phenomena relating to decentralised systems. Participatory simulations have been implemented using technology as simple as Lego bricks with tiny embedded processors and infrared exchange capabilities. Researchers who have studied participatory simulations are enthusiastic for two reasons: (1) simulations appear to make very difficult ideas around ‘distributed systems’ and ‘emergent behaviour’ more accessible to students. (2) participation embeds student engagement in a playful social space - thoughtfully acting in playful spaces - more easily become highly engaged in the subject matter. Supplementary: Difficult ideas, Phenomena…  embedded in simulation  Interaction  Build mental model simplifies manipulate

8 Collaborative data gathering Use of probe to gather and graph data from live experiments instantaneously. - allow students to gather accurate data - to focus on the interpretation of the data - inquiry-centered science classroom - ex: Palms + Probeware

9 Lessons about connectivity The WILD application: - a local messaging topology: hub and spoke 、 peer-to-peer 、 teacher  direct 、 student  intercommunicate. - teacher-controlled communications - spatially directed communications: spatial proximity organize the messaging topology - asynchronous structured data message - aggregation: allows teachers to address the variation in understandings present - a shared public display: for discussion

10 Lessons about pedagogical technology The problems with mobile wireless handheld device: - interface to instructional management - small screen with limited input possibilities - provides little insight into the social practices

11 Lessons about scale The problem of scale facing WILDs: - common software - connectivity standard for authors of such applications to target. - incompatible operating systems - wireless networking is at an extremely low level (now??) Pedagogical application standards: - Probeware has accommodated plat form incompatibilities by continual re-implementation on each successive platform. - Participatory simulations and classtalk have yet to become broad scale phenomena.

12 Conclusion To adopt a critical attitude to the economic plausibility of a ubiquitous, mobile, personal teacher and learning platform. Wireless and mobile technologies in education will succeed to the extent that coupling is increasingly understanding: - within the informatic world: appropriate communication infrastructures, protocols, messaging standards, and processing capabilities, distributed across devices. - within the social world: appropriate mutual engagement of a teachers and students in social practices of learning (learner-centered, assessment- centered, knowledge-centered, community-centered) - across the iformatic and social world