Can we indeed have a unique technology through which learners can learn from?
Here is a video that samples a few ways of novel ways of e-learning through your iPhone:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=68KgAcx_9jU
The iPhone already has tons of apps (even free) which are education-related. This novel form of e-learning combines interactivity, with selectivity, lesson planning and collaboration between teachers and learners, whilst keeping up-to-date with technology used by students to make education more accessible and faster.
Do you think that such apps should compliment current traditional forms of teaching, or substitute everything eventually? What is at stake?
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I agree with what Eleonora said with regards to iPhone becoming more popular in education. Apple's iPod and iPad are not too far away either.
ReplyDeleteI think that what's also playing an important part in the marriage of technology and education are netbooks. Laptops are nowadays not only portable, but very easily portable. Thanks also to internet dongles, one can literally have access to educational material on the internet at anytime, and from anywhere.
I doubt however, that they will ever replace traditional teaching completely. First of all an iPhone application would probably treat all students the same, which is something that we teachers are normally against. Besides, our jobs as teachers is not just to deliver material...I don't imagine an iPhone application offering a word of courage to a student when he is about to give up :)
It is a fact that students find no problem in learning how to use an iphone or similar technologies, even if the technology is new to them.
ReplyDeleteBut are they ready to make this drastical change in their learning methodology? Are they disciplined enough to do the expected work without the lecturer's supervision? Is this whole thing becoming too virtual? Are we giving no importance to student-student and student-learner interaction?
I am convinced that such applications can never substitute traditional teaching completely. I do believe that they can help, but only in a blended learning environment.
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ReplyDeleteAlthough I agree with the comments above in saying that such gadgets and applications will not be completely replacing current teaching practices, on the other hand in the past there were various doubts regarding for example the introduction of calculators and computers, whereas nowadays these became an integral part of education. Perhaps modern technologies and gadgets would become a reality in education too.
ReplyDeleteI understand the point that applications will never completely replace the teacher but it surely can make life much easier. There are already many distance learning programmes that have replaced or changed the classroom environment. What I see as challenging is to train myself in using different approaches and learning new technologies then dedicating a scholastic year to trying these systems. Also the fear that the systems would not be useful enough or that the system will fail is a great inhibiting factor.
ReplyDeleteWhat I think should be done is that these kind of systems should be adopted at the early levels of education where the students of those generations will get used to these systems and will kind it easy to adopt.
Interesting proposition. I actually believe that rather then the great next thing, this new technology is the natural step forward.
ReplyDeleteA few years back while working in industry, I came across high company officials who at the time used BlackBerrys mobiles for emails and other documents apart from calling and messaging.
Nowadays such mobiles have become commonplace and actually as you guys mentioned above, our students find no difficulty in adopting them.
What have the Iphone and Full screen touch sensitive mobiles added to the scene?
Well basically, the possibility of having a full touch screen greatly increases the range of programs and applications that can be used. Apart from those mentioned in the videos, nowadays these small mobiles or lets say pocket computers have a full qwerty keyboard and the ability to open office documents, pdf files internet etc. This apart from the now standard video and audio playback formats.
Thus these mobiles have the capacity to accept basically all the course work that is currently shared by tutors at schools and universities.
From this step to having full integrated teaching, doesn't seem such a big leap to me.
David
I strongly believe that integrating gadgets such as the iPhone into one'e curriculum could highly motivate students especially those who are totally distracted by the internet, mobile phones and video games.
ReplyDeleteDigital interactivity can easily revolutionise the classroom environment. In fact such gadgets, in my opinion, give students the information they need; when they want it and wherever they want it.