9 Ways Mobile Devices Help You Learn
Author:Daniel BarrettSep 03, 202239490 Shares572324 Views
Cell phones are widespread among students at all levels of education. And while some schools prefer to avoid cell phones by imposing bans and restrictions, others see them as powerful tools that can help students. After reading this article, you’ll learn nine interesting ways mobile devices can be useful in academics.
1. University apps and the mobile web
Universities worldwide appreciate the usefulness of mobile devices, particularly iPhones and Android, optimized mobile sites, and special apps. They allow students and other site visitors to learn about the university newsand view relevant maps and useful resources on their device screens.
Colleges, which have taken a big step in using interactive whiteboards in their classrooms, are going a step further by combining the whiteboard with mobile ones functionally.
Such apps, successfully used at Brandeis University, have been used. They make it the easiest and fastest way to get help on educational issues. For example, it is possible to instantly get information from the BidForWritinglibrary about the availability of necessary books. Princeton University provided its students with access to a media player so they could view video lectures and other instructional materials. Students can now even access the Graduate School’s course catalog.
2. eLearning
Today, mobile devices became the key to education anywhere. distance learning wonders that students can study outside the classroom without fear of missing something important.
With mobile devices, education extends beyond the physical confines of the classroom. Most of the techniques of traditional pedagogy are often implemented remotely. And mobile devices are often an excellent tool to assist with learning.
3. Complementing real-world learning programs
Cell phones allow you to get information anywhere, according to the real curriculum. Therefore, students can study from any place in the world and at a convenient time. It is especially gratifying that students can learn outside, outdoors, such as on a playground or school field.
For elementary school students, such learning can be turned into a game. For example, there is already a game-based learning program called Buffalo Hunt or Dualinguo, where students care for the buffalo of a fictional Indian tribe while learning the history of that tribe by “experiencing” it. As players reach their goal, they see some informative text, video, audio, and other learning materials that can help them add to their knowledge of history. It’s interesting, it’s fun, and therefore promotes better learning.
4. Educational mobile apps
While mobile apps today still have a long way to go before becoming commonplace in every classroom, the pace of their adoption cannot be overlooked. For example, apps that help students learn about constellations offer great ways to interact in the classroom. And while most apps are still capable of grouping students together in small groups, technology is currently being developed that allows teachers to manage the classroom from a mobile device while using the app. Thanks to such developments, teachers are increasingly using electronic resources as a teaching tool to deepen knowledge.
5. Twitter and classroom feedback
In large classrooms, when dozens or hundreds of students gather, it becomes difficult to engage each of them in the educational process. But using Twitter is the easiest way to overcome this problem. Lecture halls filled with many students come alive. Students actively write comments, ask questions, and interact with the lecturer and each other using their laptops and cell phones. Teachers can answer any questions that arise in real-time online.
Students like overcoming their shyness barriers; such an opportunity gives them an added advantage to prove themselves. And research shows that classroom activity is closely correlated with academic performance. Students gain additional motivation, confidence, and a willingness to share their points of view.
6. Mobile Library
For many years, the only way to access academic libraries was by walking and checking out the racks. Thanks to the Internet, this has changed, and now any student or researcher has no trouble logging in from any computer and enjoying the variety of resources available. Everything that the huge library collections had to offer is now available electronically.
Databases have also been developed that allow one to locate needed paper copies of books in the library quickly. Students no longer have to look at many shelves and go through hundreds of cards; the entire library database fits literally in the palm of their hand and is accessible via an electronic device from anywhere in the world.
Of course, most students still have to do the hard work of searching for materials, which traditional libraries still do. But research shows a positive trend toward using databases and resources to expedite information retrieval.
7. Mobile Payments from the Phone
Every student is familiar with the peak time in the afternoon when the entire university goes to lunch at once. The queue to pay, the crush, the inconvenience, everyone is in a hurry somewhere. With mobile devices, it’s possible to simplify this process by using your phone to buy food and drinks through secure payment transactions. Mobile payments can significantly reduce lines. It looks even more attractive when you think that it will be easier for students to keep track of their spending by tracking their payment history.
The University of Denver was the first to use such a system in the student-run Bean Café. In addition to payments, the system allows a messaging mechanism for student-focused marketing campaigns.
8. Mobile Marketing
To be a successful marketer, you must impact your target market. It’s easy to identify such a student target market by cell phones. Research conducted at Ball State University showed that 97% of students have cell phones.
The University of Louisville, along with other colleges, has taken advantage of cell phone opportunities using QR codes, SMS marketing, and the aforementioned mobile apps to reach potential students. For the University of Louisville, mobile marketing proved especially valuable because its prospective students, it later emerged, did not check email regularly, but did pay attention to their phones. The University administration is now able to share information with students and also has feedback.
9. Mobile Surveys
Response systems that allow instructors to receive responses from students in electronic surveys typically cost about $1,200 per class. But by using students’ available cell phones, the cost of the question can be reduced to as little as $50 per year.
With programs such as Poll Everywhere and Mobile Messenger, or even just SMS, teachers can use educational software and conduct flash quizzes in the classroom. Mobile devices can also be used when administering tests, doing and checking homework, and more.
It is important to encourage students to derive educational value from phone interactions rather than using the devices as entertainment.
Daniel Barrett
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