Staff writers at Best Colleges Online have put together a great article on the nine
ways mobile devices are expanding in the academic world. Below is an edited version of the article:
Mobile phones are ubiquitous among students, both in college and
K-12. And while some schools shun the use of cell phones, others are embracing
them as a powerful tool. Marketing, learning, and mobile access are just some
of the ways academia is taking advantage of what mobile has to offer.
EXPANDING UNIVERSITY APPS AND MOBILE WEB: Universities around the world have learned the
value of mobile devices, publishing iPhone and Android apps, mobile-optimized
sites, and more, that have allowed students and visitors to find campus news,
maps, and other helpful resources right in their phones.
NOMADIC LEARNING: The beauty of learning everywhere is that
students can learn outside of the classroom, not having to worry about the
world going on without them while they’re locked up inside. Podcasted classes,
real-time scavenger hunts, and mobile games are all great examples of learning
on-the-go that can be created by traditional educators, and employed by
otherwise traditional students.
AUGMENTED REALITY LEARNING SCENARIOS:Mobile phones make it possible to learn
anywhere, but with augmented reality learning scenarios, students can really
learn anywhere and even any time. Going beyond convenience, through augmented
reality mobile technology on GPS-enabled handheld devices, students can find
information from different locations outdoors, like on a playground or school
field.
MOBILE APPS FOR EDUCATION: Although overall mobile apps have a long way
to go in classroom education, they are making great progress. Apps that allow
students to explore constellations, for example, offer a great way to interact
in the classroom.
TWITTER FEEDBACK IN CLASS: Through Twitter, lecture halls full of
hundreds of students can all participate at the same time, tweeting comments,
questions, and more using their laptops and cell phones. TAs and professors can
respond to the real-time feed, and the entire classroom can watch as it goes
by. Students enjoy being able to overcome the shyness barrier, and the entire
classroom benefits from increased participation.
MOBILE LIBRARY ACCESS: For years, the only way to access academic
libraries was to physically make your way down there and get familiar with the
stacks. With the Internet, that’s changed, allowing students and researchers to
log in from any computer and enjoy many of the resources that libraries have to
offer. But with mobile devices, the game is further changed, allowing for the
use of eBooks in academic reading, mobile library database access, and simple
library notifications.
MOBILE PHONE PAYMENTS: Anyone who’s tried to get lunch during the
afternoon rush on a college campus can tell you that things get a little crazy,
especially when it comes to paying for food. With mobile devices, schools have
the opportunity to streamline the process, using phones to buy food and
beverages through secure transactions.
MOBILE MARKETING: To be a good marketer, you’ve got to go where
your target market is, and for colleges, their target market is on cell phones.
Research from Ball State University indicates that 97% of all U.S. college
students own a cell phone. The University of Louisville and other colleges have
capitalized on this opportunity, using QR codes, SMS marketing, and the
aforementioned mobile apps to connect with prospective students.
MOBILE POP QUIZZES: Student response systems, which allow teachers
to get digital answers from students in their class, usually cost about $1,200
for each classroom. But by using existing student cell phones, that price tag
is quickly slashed to just $50 a year. In addition to quizzes, teachers are
able to use cell phones for testing, homework assignments, and more,
encouraging students to educationally engage with their phones instead of using
them as a distraction.
Read full article here:
http://www.mobl21.com/blog/28/9-ways-mobile-is-moving-into-academia/
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