Wireless data communications in form of Short Message Service (SMS) and Wireless Access Protocols (WAP) browsers have gained global popularity, yet, not much has been done to extend the usage of these devices in electronic learning (e-learning). This project explores the extension of e-learning into wireless/handheld (W/H) computing devices with the help of a mobile learning (m-learning) framework. This framework provides the requirements to develop m-learning applications that can be used to complement classroom or distance learning. A prototype application was developed to link W/H devices to three course websites. The m-learning applications were pilot-tested for two semesters with a total of 63 students from undergraduate and graduate courses at our university. The students used the m-learning environment with a variety of W/H devices and reported their experiences through a survey and interviews at the end of the semester. The results from this exploratory study provide a better understanding on the role of mobile technology in higher education.

Mobile learning: A framework and evaluation

This paper reviews roughly 200 recent studies of mobile (cellular) phone use in the developing world, and identifies major concentrations of research. It categorizes studies along two dimensions. One dimension distinguishes studies of the determinants of mobile adoption from those that assess the impacts of mobile use, and from those focused on the interrelationships between mobile technologies and users. A secondary dimension identifies a subset of studies with a strong economic development perspective. The discussion considers the implications of the resulting review and typology for future research.

Research Approaches to Mobile Use in the Developing World: A Review of the Literature

There is an increase use of wireless technologies in education all over the world. In fact, wireless technologies such as laptop computers, palmtop computers and mobile phones are revolutionising education and transforming the traditional classroom-based learning and teaching into anytime and anywhere education.Thispaperinvestigatestheuseof wirelesstechnologiesineducation with particular reference to the potential of learning new technical English language words using Short Message Service (SMS) text messaging. The system,developedbytheauthors,calledmobilelearningtool(MOLT),hasbeen tested with 45 1st-year undergraduate students. The knowledge of students before and after the experiment has been measured. Our results show that students enjoyed and learned new words with the help of their mobile phones. We believe that using the MOLT system as an educational tool will contribute to the success of students.

http://abieasman.persiangig.com/m-learning.pdf

m‐Learning: An experiment in using SMS to support learning new English language words

Digital artifacts are embedded in wider and constantly shifting ecosystems such that they become increasingly editable, interactive, reprogrammable, and distributable. This state of flux and constant transfiguration renders the value and utility of these artifacts contingent on shifting webs of functional relations with other artifacts across specific contexts and organizations. By the same token, it apportions control over the development and use of these artifacts over a range of dispersed stakeholders and makes their management a complex technical and social undertaking. These ideas are illustrated with reference to (1) provenance and authenticity of digital documents within the overall context of archiving and social memory and (2) the content dynamics occasioned by the findability of content mediated by Internet search engines. We conclude that the steady change and transfiguration of digital artifacts signal a shift of epochal dimensions that calls for rethinking some of the inherited wisdom in IS research and practice.

The ambivalent ontology of digital artifacts

In just a few years, e-learning has become part of the mainstream in medical education. While e-learning means many things to many people, at its heart it is concerned with the educational uses of technology. For the purposes of this guide, we consider the many ways that the information revolution has affected and remediated the practice of healthcare teaching and learning. Deploying new technologies usually introduces tensions, and e-learning is no exception. Some wish to use it merely to perform pre-existing activities more efficiently or faster. Others pursue new ways of thinking and working that the use of such technology affords them. Simultaneously, while education, not technology, is the prime goal (and for healthcare, better patient outcomes), we are also aware that we cannot always predict outcomes. Sometimes, we have to take risks, and 'see what happens.' Serendipity often adds to the excitement of teaching. It certainly adds to the excitement of learning. The use of technology in support of education is not, therefore, a causal or engineered set of practices; rather, it requires creativity and adaptability in response to the specific and changing contexts in which it is used. Medical Education, as with most fields, is grappling with these tensions; the AMEE Guide to e-Learning in Medical Education hopes to help the reader, whether novice or expert, navigate them. This Guide is presented both as an introduction to the novice, and as a resource to more experienced practitioners. It covers a wide range of topics, some in broad outline, and others in more detail. Each section is concluded with a brief 'Take Home Message' which serves as a short summary of the section. The Guide is divided into two parts. The first part introduces the basic concepts of e-learning, e-teaching, and e-assessment, and then focuses on the day-to-day issues of e-learning, looking both at theoretical concepts and practical implementation issues. The second part examines technical, management, social, design and other broader issues in e-learning, and it ends with a review of emerging forms and directions in e-learning in medical education.

AMEE Guide 32: e-Learning in medical education Part 1: Learning, teaching and assessment

This paper reports the results of an experiment undertaken to test the effectiveness of a two-way SMS campaign for a UK youth brand. These results are presented, and considered from the perspective of leveraging these results in an educational technology context. It is proposed that these results and their findings can inform more effective future usage of mobile technologies in education.

SMS and interactivity-some results from the field, and its implications on effective uses of mobile technologies in education

Research at Kingston University has identified that first year students desire support in managing their time and activities in both physical and virtual space. SMS text messaging was used as an experimental method of providing a form of "mobile scaffolding" at a fundamental level to support these needs, and guide students towards independent self-management; i.e. creating a personal mobile support context for learning and doing. The initial results of this experiment are presented, and appear to support the case for such provision, but suggest the social context warrants consideration within the proposed framework. A discussion of issues identified for consideration is presented to inform further development and implementation in this area.

Mobile scaffolding: an experiment in using SMS text messaging to support first year university students

"ITZ GD 2 TXT" - How To Use SMS Effectively In M-Learning

Designing scalable, effective mobile learning for multiple technologies

The Cedars project in the UK has been set up to explore some of the issues associated with archiving of digital materials and to make recommendations to libraries about preserving digital materials. Cedars, which is led by the Consortium of University Research Libraries (CURL), is funded as part of the Electronic Libraries Programme (eLib) by the Joint Information Systems Committee of the Higher Education Funding Councils.

A. Stone

Papers

SMS and interactivity-some results from the field, and its implications on effective uses of mobile technologies in education

Mobile scaffolding: an experiment in using SMS text messaging to support first year university students

"ITZ GD 2 TXT" - How To Use SMS Effectively In M-Learning

Designing scalable, effective mobile learning for multiple technologies

Preserving digital scholarship: the future is now