information delivered on the PDA during
exploration was not as successful, possibly
because the coupling between the physical
activity and the digital feedback was not
close enough. Stage 3 was engaging and
fun, and verified that children were able
to make accurate hypotheses.There are
currently no reports on how the Ambient
Wood experience compared with more
traditional field trips.
3.3.2 Natural science learning
in Taiwan
A butterfly-watching system was
implemented and tested at an elementary
school in Taiwan (Chen et al 2004). The
objective was for the students to learn
about natural sciences, and more
specifically about the different kinds of
butterflies in the region.
The project was based on the premises of
independent learning, with the assumption
being that providing appropriate mobile
tools would help students to become
capable, self-reliant, self-motivated and
independent. The system was
implemented using a wireless ad-hoc
networking environment, comprising of a
(teacher’s) notebook with a WiFi wireless
LAN card that acted as the local server,
and student PDAs with 802.11 LAN cards
and small-sized CCD cameras.
A database of different butterfly species in
Taiwan was used with a content-based
image retrieval system, and an online
nature journal system. The students visited
a butterfly farm, where the networking
environment was set up and they could
use their PDA cameras to take
photographs of the butterflies they
observed. Using the photos, they could
then query the database, which would
send back possible matches. The students
could then decide which match was best,
and the database would verify based on
image content similarity. The students
then made the final decision, which they
recorded on their journal together with
their notes of the whole experience, and
posted to the teacher. The teacher in turn
sent feedback to the students on their PDAs.
In the evaluations, a control group used a
text-based butterfly guidebook and the
experimental group used the system
described above. Multiple choice tests on
the key features of the butterfly species
were administered before and after the
trial. Six field trips were conducted in total,
with students encountering three new
species and three old species at each trip.
In four out of the six field trips, the
experimental group was able to more
correctly identify the key features than the
control group.
3.3.3 Multimedia tours at the
Tate Modern
The Tate Modern museum in London
(Proctor and Burton 2003) launched an
interactive audio-visual tour in July 2002.
A wireless network implementation
allowed visitors using iPAQ 3850 Pocket
PCs to view video and still images, listen
to expert commentary and reflect on their
experience by answering questions or
mixing a collection of sound clips to create
their own soundtrack for an artwork. The
wireless network was location-sensitive,
which meant that they did not have to
search out the information.
The pilot tour was taken by 852 visitors.
Through evaluations and focus groups,
visitors reported their |
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enthusiasm for the
tour and the services it provided. The
average visitor spent about 55 minutes on
the tour and over 70% reported that they
had spent longer than they would have
without the multimedia tour. Interestingly,
45% of the visitors found the system
difficult to use, with older visitors reporting
more technological difficulties than
younger visitors.
Regarding the content itself, the most
effective design approaches were those
that incorporated audio, particularly
audio-visual coherence and interactive
messages. Visitors did not respond well
to long messages, particularly those
that were primarily text-based. A second
phase of trials ran until May 2004, with
comprehensive results expected later
in the year.
3.3.4 MOBIlearn
MOBIlearn, a major European research
project, is focusing on the context-aware
delivery of content and services to learners
with mobile devices (Lonsdale et al
2003;2004). Context awareness
is being explored not just as a way to
deliver appropriate content but to enable
appropriate actions and activities,
including interactions with other learners
in the same or similar contexts.
The central aim of this project is to
produce a reusable architecture for mobile
learning. Researchers at the University of
Birmingham are currently developing a
reference context awareness module
(CAM) that will facilitate context-dependent
information delivery for learners on a wide
variety of mobile devices (Lonsdale et al
2003). It is intended to support a
range of different learners in different
environments, and addresses the following
specific issues:
• human interfaces adaptive to the mobile
device in use and the nature (eg
bandwidth, cost) of the ambient
intelligence that is available in a given
locations
• context-awareness tools for exploiting
context and capturing learning
experience
• integration of mobile media delivery and
learning content management systems
• collaborative learning applications for
mobile environments.
Trials of an art gallery implementation
are scheduled for December 2004.
3.4 COLLABORATIVE LEARNING
The most compelling examples of
conversational learning occur when mobile
technology is used to provide a shared
conversation space. Effective learning
occurs when people can converse with
each other, by interrogating and sharing
their descriptions of the world.
3.4.1 Chile embraces mobile
computer supported collaborative
learning (MCSCL)
Researchers from the Universidad Católica
de Chile are using hand-held computers to
encourage face-to-face collaborative
learning for both primary and secondary
education (Zurita et al 2003; Cortez et al
2004; Zurita and Nussbaum 2004).
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the most
compelling
examples of
conversational
learning occur
when mobile
technology is
used to provide
a shared
conversation
space |
