Mlearn 2008-The Bridge from Text to Context
Toshiba, sponsored the best paper at the Mlearn conference and this was won by Adele Botha of the Meraka Institute, Pretoria, South Africa for her paper on “Digital Life Skills” for Young and Mobile “digital citizens”
Telford became the epi-centre for world thinking about the place of mobile technologies in education this week (October 9-11). The University of Wolverhampton is hosting mLearn, the 7th world conference on mobile learning which was returning to the UK where it started and Toshiba have played a vital role in the mobile learning movement.
And there were some key messages for school leaders facing the challenges of renewing the learning in their schools through Building Schools for the Future or the Primary Capital Programme.
“It seems we have said here is a technological solution - now what is the educational problem?” asked Professor Diana Laurillard from the London Knowledge Lab, part of the Institute of Education, She opened the event with a keynote presentation that set mobile learning in the context of learning theory and a “conversation framework” to help educators understand the synergy between learning and digital technologies.
“Digital technologies are not optimised for learning” she explained.
She suggests what we should be asking is :
“what supports the learning process…..what technologies will optimise intensive active learning?”
Drawing on her conceptual frameworks identified in her inaugral lecture at the LKL http://www.lkl.ac.uk/cms/files/jce/presentations/laurillard-inaugural-20080226.ppt she argues that we should;
“make pedagogy the driver of technology and not the other way round”
This is a critical consideration for the BSF programme
Some would argue that young people and their own devices are going to be the biggest catalyst for change within education.
More than 220 delegates from every continent of the world (barring Antarctica) gathered to explore and share experiences of how mobile technologies are impacting on learning.
Why ban mobile phones in school?
“90% of young people carry mobile phones in their school uniform”
A very recent piece of research from Nottingham University Learning and Science Research Institute, supported by BECTA, was shared by Elizabeth Hartnell-Young and provide some illuminating data on the use of mobile phones in schools.
Her research suggests the resistance to the use of mobile phones for learning is largely an issue of lack of teacher confidence, fear of loss of teacher control, leadership and the ability to manage change within schools.
http://partners.becta.org.uk/index.php?section=rh&catcode=_re_rp_02_a&rid=15482
The major recommendation of this project is the need to shift the focus of policy away from the devices themselves to consider the frequently-reported reasons that mobile phones are banned: fear of distraction in class, cheating, inappropriate recording of students and teachers, and publication on sites like You Tube.
Solutions must be found to each of these, in policies that address:
- ownership of computing equipment and access to network connections
- tools to support curriculum and its personalisation
- appropriate behaviour in school and other contexts
- privacy and security of data, including photographs and video clips
In her final appearance before returning to her native Australia to take up a post in Educational Research Elizabeth cautioned against “revolution” and suggests “evolution” would be a better way forward;
“While the eventual aim could be to replace policies that involve blanket bans on devices, I do not recommend whole-school change at the outset, rather a gradual adoption as attitudes and behaviours align with purposeful learning, until the school (and the community) reaches the tipping point, and mobile phone use is as natural as using any other technology in school.”
When asked what she thought the critical issue which was affecting the effective use of mobile technology in education she replied ;
“ I think attitude and culture are the biggest challenges….leadership is vital and teachers are the key!”
The NCSL BSF Leadership programme will be drawing on this and other research to raise awareness and help schools clarify their vision in their strategy for change and help school leadership teams provide answers to the question;
“Why ban mobile phones in schools?” Elizabeth’s research suggests we shouldn’t!
