M-LEARNING IN YOUR CLASSROOM
Ismail Fayed
English Lecturer & eLearning Facilitator
Foundation Program Department of English
ifayed [at] qu.edu.qa
Twitter: @tweet4education
Qatar University & Qatar TESOL PD Event, November 2013

Outline
• Introduction
• MLearning potentials
• MLearning projects worldwide
• MLearning trends
• MLearning teaching ideas and practices
• Designing a web-based mobile app

Introduction
• Smartphones threaten the existence of physical books.
• Mobile subscriptions 87% of world population
(International Telecommunication Union, 2011)
• The number of mobile phones today covers threequarters of the world’s population (The World Bank, 2012)
• ICT adoption with an ICT household penetration rate of
84% as of 2010 (Qatar’s ICT Landscape Report, 2011)
• 3.9 mobile phones per household in Qatar
• 95% of their students are connected to the Internet
within their universities.

“A household in Qatar owns three mobile
phones, two computers, and one smartphone.
Qatari youth are leading the way in ICT
penetration and smartphone usage… ”
Qatar’s ICT Landscape report (2013)

M-Learning (Background)
• Mobile learning (m-learning) is the “ability to acquire or share
educational content on personal pocket devices such as PDAs,
smartphones and mobile phones”, (MOBL21, 2013).
• Still not clear for many educators how to start.
• Students might be more ready and ahead of their teachers in using
PADs and Smartphones!
• In education, they are still considered of “surface disruptive” nature but
it is not if it is well represented through m-learning,
(UNESCO Mobile Learning, 2011)
• According to the same report, mobiles now create strong new
identities, ideas & content through the “massive social networking
potentials”.
• Gradually removes the walls or barriers between formal and informal
education.

• M-learning represents a new form of digital personalized
learning where:
content, interactivity, access, simulation, responses,
engagement, assessment and tracking are all available at
once in a small connected and portable device.
• Careful planning still needs to take place to adopt this massive
change in learning.
• M-learning might, and most probably is going to, replace the
common e-learning solutions.
• Smartphones and PADs are probably going to replace laptops
and desktops.
• The explosive spread of mobile devices as a good opportunity
to combine work, study and leisure time in meaningful ways.
(Turunen, 2003)

• Reference to the quality of learning, online communities,
mobile and personalized learning were among several other
topics addressed by (Ally, 2009).
• As applied technology, teachers now collaboratively attempt
to share best practices and m-learning innovative teaching
tips using social networks under creative common licenses,
(Barret, 2011).
• Key channels of learning, communication and sharing through
mobiles are via SMS, voice, document, audio, video and
interactivity. (Quinn, 2011)
• Each of these channels could represent a separate field of
research but all of them together in one mobile device
represent an exceptional opportunity for bringing learning
autonomy to the hands of young learners.

• Augmented reality to increase performance
and pleasure of mobile learning (Wang et. al 2009
and Brewer, 2006) .
• Ubiquitous learning as “personalizing the
learning experience”  
[no limitations in terms of time, place or even
individual learning preferences & needs.
(Graf & Sabine, 2008)
• accommodating learners’ differences through
m-learning leads to more quality and effective
learning. (Graf & Sabine, 2008)

http://www.wiredacademic.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/21st_century_classroom.jpg

New potentials and opportunities
 access information,
 communicate and manipulate data
and media content.
 communicate with other learners
 use the target language 24/7!
 track learners’ progress and performance
 from receptive to productive skills
 increased productivity, interactivity and functionality.
(Shinagawa, 2012)
 recording and sharing media
(Glavnici et al., 2009; Hu & Huang, 2010)
 digital fun

Mlearning projects
(UN Report: West, 2012)

M-Learning Initiatives in the Arab World
• iPad tablet PCs in all UAE universities as of 2012
(The New York Times, 2012 & Swan, 2012)
• Qatar 2013: “e-bag” project in 15 independent schools
so far
• Qatar 2013: iPad tablets in The Foundation City
(Carnegie Mellon University Qatar, Northwestern University in Qatar, Georgetown
University in Qatar, Weill Cornell Medical College in Qatar, Virginia Commonwealth
University in Qatar)
• Egypt 2012-13: The “Inar” Andriod tablets in all schools

Possible mobile-mediated learning
strategies
• Pairing and sharing, peer reviews, threadeddiscussions and scaffolding;
• Authentic teaching resources “using real pictures,
animations, YouTube videos for descriptive
paragraph, showing and discussing their social media
pages & watching/ listening to video clips.”
(Gromik, 2012)

M-Learning Components
• Hardware: (iOS/ Andriod/ Windows/ ??)
• Apps & Features: (web 2.0 websites vs. other apps)
• Curriculum: (Textbooks &lesson activities related to learning
goals but supported by mobile devices)
• Lesson plans
• Assessment (of learning)
• Teacher (training, understanding, attitudes,
collaboration)
• Students (training, understanding, attitudes)
• Feedback & evaluation (ongoing)

The Capabilities/Affordances of Mobile
Computing
• Camera (capturing video and images, augmented reality,
• Quick Response (QR) code reading)
• Document viewer (eBook, PDF)
• Geo-location (GPS, geo-fencing, mapping)
• Internal sensors (accelerometer, barometer, compass, gyroscope, proximity)
• Media viewer / playback (image, video, audio, podcast)
• Microphone (voice recording, podcast)
• Notification (alert, sound, vibrate)
• Search (discovery, quick-reference, search engine)
• Short-range communication (Bluetooth, Near Field
• Communication (NFC), Radio Frequency Identification (RFID), Wi-Fi)
• Text message (SMS), Multimedia & Message Service (MMS)
• Touchscreen interaction
• Voice / phone communications
Woodill, 2013

Charging, Syncing &
Securing
Multiple Tablet
Devices
www.iPadcart.info

http://www.ashridge.org.uk/Website/Content.nsf/wFARCRED/Going+Mobile+in+Executive+Education?opendocument

http://www.teachthought.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/08/teachers-new-to-ipads.jpg

It is all about your ideas!

QU Learn App
Download link: http://bit.ly/HnPhXK
Video demo: www.youtube.com/watch?v=jtk17Cy7KQ0

QR codes
You could present information
/assignments / feedback to
learners by generating QR
codes that can be read by
their smart phones.
@charlottelovie
(Barret, 2012)

Homework Diaries
Phones can replace homework
diaries: setting work and
reminders are an easy way for
pupils to engage with learning!
Dear Diary by incurable_hippie
@stuart_g_brown

Quick Research
Grouping students together
with internet phones can be an
innovative way to undertake
research tasks.
Provided boundaries are set
then it can prove a great
success!
Office: research in
progress by wili_hybrid
@stuart_g_brown

Take a quick poll of your audience
Use any one of the many polling
services to have your audience send
a quick response to an SMS short
code.
One example of a service is
www.polleverywhere.com
@Thespian70
Vote by alancleaver_2000

Take a picture!
Take photos of work from the
board, examples of models, posters
or other things that can't be glued
inside a book.
If they contain video recorders,
students can film short sketches
which could then be bluetoothed to
the teacher to be shared.
@davestacey

Video!
When demonstrating a technical
sequence get a class expert with a
phone to record it. Then once video
sent to you via Bluetooth / cable /
wifi / whatever, you can place on
LAN or share to class via Youtube /
Vimeo / whatever. This can then be
added to a class blog, added to an
intranet / VLE so forth and so on.
Image courtesy
of http://www.digmo.co.uk/photo/free-creativecommons-photos-for-education/
@ICTEvangelist | Mark Anderson

GPS (geolocation)
Use augmented reality virtual
tours around museums or
historical places.
A nice game could be “seek
and spell”:
http://www.seeknspell.com/

Voice recorder
Collect audio evidence / feedback on work. Add to
portfolio as evidence of peer feedback / learning /
development - transfer to machine via bluetooth / wifi /
email / etc and link up by embedding / storing on
intranet etc.
http://audioboo.fm/
Voice recorder could be used for other purposes too
such as: interview | recording instructions | podcast
style notes | keywords for revision | add your own here
@ICTEvangelist | Mark Anderson
Image courtesy of Morrhigan: http://www.sxc.hu/photo/109150

Captain's log!
• Set a class task of recording a
personal log for a week.
• Students can use voice or video.
• Logs can be edited prior to sharing
- add images or text using movie
software.
• Give a frame work or theme as
start point (Letters, numbers,
colors or simply 'Today, I ...’ )
@thosethatcan
Photo credit: http://www.appcraver.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/06/apple-voice-memos-voice-recorderiphone.jpg

Calling an expert/ Class interview
Teachers can use a cellphone alone or with
some special apps to make a video or voice
call with an expert in order to achieve certain
objectives in the classroom, and their students
can use it also in a group work.
When you have many groups working at the
same time, each group will have an interview
with an expert of a certain topic of which it
can be a project or a collaborative classroom
activity.
by @missnoor28
http://askiphone.net/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/Make-Video-Calling-with-Fring-App-oniPhone1.png

A fun way of learning a language
- Translation: with a text or a picture..
- Spelling : Flashcards, games,
crosswords..
- Listening: Podcasts, stories,
recorded audio files, radio,..
- Reading: Articles and e-books from
a pdf reader, google ..
- Writing: Text messages or notes
tobe send by bluetooth.
- Projects: like podcasting, visualize
list of vocabulary, pictures for
vocabulary cards...
by @missnoor28
http://www.appcraver.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/bookworm.jpg

A digital Storytelling tool
Digital storytelling projects can
be easily implemented with cell phones
because of their ability of :
Audio Recording,Photosharing,
Video Webcasting ,Video
Recording, saving chat logs and
writing text messages…
with a publishing option for some apps
to a website
All of these elements are necessary
in a digital storytelling project.
By @missnoor28
http://blog.cinchcast.com/2010/06/18/new-cinchapp-for-android

E-reader or Text Book Option
Students access full text
websites and use the cell
phone as an e-reader or
text book.
For teaching Shakespeare,
there's an app for that!
Photo from my classroom April 2011
by Lee Ann Spillane @spillarke

Dictionary or Word Play Pal
Students with texting plans
can text Google (466-453) to
define a word by sending
define: (put word here).
Responses returned in less
than 30 seconds.
Or if word play is what
vocabulary learners need try
the Jumbli.tv app or Words
With Friends.
Photo from my classroom April 2011
by Lee Ann Spillane @spillarke

Make Comics
Strip Designer
is a great app for creating comics on an
iPad, iPod touch or iPhone.
Comics are a great way of getting
children to record or report on their
experiences & learning.
App can upload to flickr, twitpic, email
(posterous) etc.
@johnjohnston

Create and Collaborate on Google Docs
Now that Google allows mobile
editing of Google Docs files
from iOS and other mobile
devices, student class
collaboration can stay portable.
image source:
<http://googledocs.blogspot.com/2010/11/editing-yourgoogle-docs-on-go.html>
@EvolvedTech
http://gizmodo.com/#!5692386/now-you-can-create-and-edit-google-docs-on-ipad-iphone-and-android

Use iTranslate/ Google translate to
"Speak" Many Languages
When two new non-English
speaking students entered my
class, we used iTranslate to
assist conversation
Later we used this app for
learning endeavors.
@lookforsun

Create a mobile app (Winksite)
• Create App: http://www.technogogy.org.uk/winksite_create.html
• Edit App: http://www.technogogy.org.uk/winksite_edit.html

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Thank you