conceptual framework for democratized mobile learning: empowering nontechnical teachers through...
DESCRIPTION
The Android operating system (OS) is currently dominating the smart phone and tablet markets. The Free and Open Source (FOSS) frameworks and ease of use has made Android the most sought after OS for use by mobile device manufacturing giants such as Samsung, LG and HTC. With thousands of apps available through the ‘Google Play’ store, Android provides a feature rich experience to the user and has an app for just about anything imaginable. The substantial growth of the mobile device market over the past few years has caught the attention of many sectors including governments, industries and educators. However, the most notable development comes from higher education institutions (HEI) which are investing heavily in developing customized apps to facilitate content delivery, students support, information dissemination, social learning and assessment feedback, combined with learning analytics, to give their students that extra edge in learning. Traditionally, Android app development is a highly specialized field reserved only for software engineers and programmers. However, the growing demand for customized apps has lead to the democratization of Android app development through the concept of ‘Visual Programming’ (VP). VP is a concept which allows non-programmers to build powerful application using visual building blocks. It can be best explained as constructing a jigsaw puzzle using fitting puzzle pieces. The leading visual app development platform at present is the ‘App Inventor’ platform developed by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) of the US. It has joined forces with Google to provide a robust solution for customized app development for the Android OS. This paper outlines how the concept of VP, through the exclusively web based App Inventor platform, can be used to empower nontechnical ODL practitioners in their content delivery, assessments and student support. A conceptual framework is introduced which enables teachers to create their own Android apps, use them in their teaching activities and engage students in creating project apps for collaborative learning. The framework is anchored in the ideology of openness where Open Educational Resources (OER) and FOSS are used to facilitate the teaching and learning process. The contribution of this paper is this conceptual framework which demonstrates the steps involved in capacity building, design, development and deployment of sophisticated custom mobile learning applications. The advantage of my work is the democratization of mobile learning through the empowerment of the ODL teacher.TRANSCRIPT
Conceptual Framework for Democratized Mobile Learning
Empowering Nontechnical Teachers through
Visual Programming
Ishan Abeywardena28th Asian Association of Open
Universities Annual Conference(AAOU 2014)
Hong Kong SAR, China29th October 2014
Conceptual Framework for Democratized Mobile Learning
Empowering Nontechnical Teachers through
Visual Programming
Ishan Abeywardena28th Asian Association of Open
Universities Annual Conference(AAOU 2014)
Hong Kong SAR, China29th October 2014
The FrameworkThe Framework
Train Nontechnical Teachers(Training of Trainers)
Develop Ideas in the Classroom for Mobile Learning
Build Capacities in Mobile App Development
Custom Develop Mobile Apps for the Classroom
First TOT WorkshopSTOU, Thailand
August 2014
First TOT WorkshopSTOU, Thailand
August 2014
FeedbackFeedback
31st October and 1st November 2014
• Who should participate:– lecturers, teachers and trainers– programmers, software engineers, IT staff– educational technologists– entrepreneurs and business owners– anyone interested in learning mobile app development.
• The objectives of the workshop are to assist you to:– Familiarize yourself with the AI2 platform– Use the Designer and Blocks Editor– Implement various components in applications– Design rich user experiences (UX)– Practise packaging and distribution of applications.
Second TOT WorkshopOUHK, Hong Kong SAR
October 2014
Second TOT WorkshopOUHK, Hong Kong SAR
October 2014
C0416, Homantin campus, OUHK
I acknowledge the support provided by
Dr K.C. Li and Dr K.S. Yuen, Secretaries of the conference organizing committee; and Open University of Hong Kong (OUHK)
by extending full sponsorship for may participation at the 28th Asian Association of Open Universities Annual Conference (AAOU 2014).
AcknowledgementsAcknowledgements
About…About…Ishan AbeywardenaDirector, International Academic Relations Division, The Open University of Sri Lanka.
• MSc in Wireless Enterprise Business Systems, Brunel University, UK.• MSc in Engineering Management, Brunel University, UK.• BSc in Computer Science, Bangalore University, India.• PhD Candidate in Computer Science, University Malaya, Malaysia. Areas of specialisation: text
mining, metadata, faceted search
Professional Member of– Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (MIEEE)– British Computer Society (MBCS)– Institution of Engineering and Technology (MIET)– Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) and Microsoft Technology Associate (MTA)
Professional Profile: http://www.linkedin.com/in/ishansa
Research Profile: http://www.researchgate.net/profile/Ishan_Abeywardena/
Tech Blog: http://www.ishantalks.com
E-mail: [email protected]
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• http://coderdojonavan.wordpress.com/app-inventor/