I recently did an inventory of the computers that I have owned over the past thirty years and it was an enlightening experience. If you haven’t done this, it is worth taking 15 minutes to go through it and think about how the technology has impacted your life.
For me, it started in high school. My mother worked for IBM and I always thought that I would work for Big Blue. In grade 11 I took my first ‘computer course’ – Basic Programming on the Commodore PET. We had three computers and three tape drives at the start of the year and thirty students in the class – a 10:1 student to computer ratio. It was awesome.
During the summer between my second and third year of college, I was visiting my mother and she came home from work one day with a beautifully packed box that contained my first computer – the IBM PC Jr (thinking that maybe Steve Jobs had one as well – since all of his gear is so neatly packed). I still get goose bumps remembering the feeling I got when I flipped the switch on that baby for the first time. It was shortly thereafter that I realized that IBM and technology would not be where I wanted to spend my life but instead, to focus on what could be done with ‘the computer’. It was crystal clear – this is going to change the way students learn… and I wanted to dedicate my waking hours to figuring out how to leverage this magnificent medium for learning.
Fast forward – over the ensuing years my inventory consisted of an additional 1-286, 1-386, 4-486’s, 12 Laptops, 8-Handhelds, and now… two iPads.
When I broke the seal on my first iPad and began to use it, I had a euphoric feeling. It reminded me of three previous experiences in my life:
- The freedom I felt when I got the training wheels off my first bicycle
- The adventure I felt when I accessed the internet for the first time through Netscape
- The openness I felt when I plugged the first wireless card into my laptop
The neurons were firing on how this new device could be used to expand learning opportunities to students.
So why am I saying ‘mobile learning is a fad’?
The reason is simple. The learning is not about the device, it is about what the medium does to untether the student from physical space and time and the immediacy it offers. If you think about it, we don’t have programs in schools and colleges called ‘desktop learning’ or ‘laptop learning’… we focus on using these tools and the software to enhance learning and help teachers, faculty, and students achieve their educational goals.
That noted, the three things about this medium that are going to have major impacts on learning are:
- Instantaneous – Flip of the cover, swipe of a finger and tap of an icon and you are online. The ability to be online and learning in less than five seconds breaks down a mental barrier. There are no boot delays or distractions and learners can get locked into their learning immediately.
- Access, Location, & Everywhere – The portability of a 673g (1.35 pounds) device allows learners to take the device everywhere. Take a look around. Stand in any WiFi enabled coffee shop in America for 25 minutes and you will see someone with a tablet (to the point where NYC Starbuck’s are blocking outlets to increase flow-through traffic ). If you don’t have 3G, apps like WiFi Finder and sites like JiWire make it extremely easy to be online and learning almost anywhere.
- Touch, Movement, Manipulation, & Design – There is something intimate about touch. I am talking about the ability to be able to touch an element on the screen, move it, expand it, shrink it, and manipulate it. The tactile nature of the device brings a new dimension to learning that has not traditionally been available. The physicality can make learning more concrete.
As educators and educational service providers, it is #3 that we can focus on to make an impact. This is where we have the opportunity to leverage the tool and ensure that the phrase ‘mobile learning’ becomes a fad and that the usage is imbued so deeply into our educational environments that it simply becomes ‘learning’.
More on ‘how’ to think about this and do this in Part II…