Macmillan Apps

Education 2.0

Posted by nana, on July, in MLearning

Have you heard of Education 2.0?  It’s a new look for education as we know it, incorporating new technologies into the learning process and creating a new learning environment that is more responsive, more individual-focussed and more flexible.

With the introduction of mobile phones into the learning environment, students can learn on the go, start topic-based discussions over instant messenger, access online tests and classnotes, and study at times and in locations that suit them best.

Even more impressive is the advent of Augmented Reality. Students will soon be able to point their mobile phones at objects or images and pull up a whole database of new facts and information. Imagine what this could do to class trips?  Will English language learners soon be able to visit English-speaking countries and just point their apps at objects they don’t know the words for or can’t pronounce? It opens up language learning to a completely immersive experience.

But where are we seeing mobiles successfully being used in classrooms?

Case Study: Seshadripuram First Grade College, Bangalore

At this Indian college mobile phones already form a part of the learning process. Students are not expected to buy the mobiles themselves. Instead, the school distributes low-cost handsets to students and then sets them multiple-choice tests and task to get through.  As a precaution they disabled certain services such as gaming to make sure that students were using the phones for the right things.

The college create and administer tests using this system, as well as tracking students’ results and evaluating their performance. The system is also used to offer counselling and career services, as well as monitoring class attendance.  And at the end of the day, all students are required to return their mobiles to the college administration.

To find out more, head to their website.

Do you work or study at an institution that also uses this technology? Let us know about your efforts to engage with Mlearning.