Nokia researcher Jan Chipchase investigates the ways we interact with technology — a quest that has led him from the villages of Uganda to the insides of our pockets. Along the way, he’s made some unexpected discoveries: about the ways illiterate people use their mobile phones, the new roles the mobile can play in global commerce, and the deep emotional bonds we share with our phones.

TEDBlog: Our cell phones, ourselves: Jan Chipchase on TED.com

Loved these 15 minutes with Nokia researcher, Jan Chipchase. I’ve got some loose thoughts and reactions to this, loosely joined - recommend you watch it if you haven’t already! If you have, what did you make of it? I’d be interested to hear from those who attended Mlearn2007 in Melbourne or the Handheld Learning conference whether you have some points to add here? Chipchase starts off with an idea about what we carry on our person and why. He uses this process to outline our behaviours.

He discusses this in relation to Maslow’s hierarchy of needs, which helps illustrate our behaviour as we go about our daily lives, interacting, connecting and generally surviving. Chipchase also notes the three things we carry most on us 9and how maslow’s hierarchy of needs might be applied to these): 1) keys (for shelter), 2) money (to buy food) and 3) mobile phone (excellent recovery device, and I’d add connecting device).

Chipchase then discusses then phenomenon of ‘the street’: a place where innovation occurs in true fashion and out of necessity. Jan asks: as designers, what lessons can we learn from the street?

• what does the street say about trust and confidence in (financial) interactions (that we could apply to online and other services)?
• how might we better design such services?
• should we be thinking about Personal Area Network (PAN) designs, clothing and integrated wearable technologies, seeing as we are emotionally connected to tools like our mobile phones?
• even our homes are being identified not by house numbers but by our mobile phone numbers (Jan gives an example of a Ugandan front door inscribed with mobile phone numbers as an identifying feature) - what does this say about our identity? (Alex, I’d love to hear your thoughts on this!).

Then Chipchase wraps up with some thoughts and ideas related to these lessons (or questions) from ‘the street’:

• we must consider the speed at which ideas go around
• if we are to embrace ‘big’ ideas we must embrace everyone (and 300 billion is getting there!)
• small and speedy (like mobile phones) highlights the immediacy of objects - we can capitalise on this if we think creatively
• design - no matter what we intend of a design or object, the street will take it and innovate it further beyond our thinking - how do we create room for this in our designs?
• with another 300 billion people connected in the future we really must learn how to listen, because these people will want to be part of the conversation!

I like ‘the street’ phenomenon: it conjures up metaphors like ’streetwise’, ’street ready’, ‘taking it to the street’, and so. I like the thought too (and practice) of a mobile phone being an ATM! I also liked the notion of illiteracy being managed by some via the ‘art of delegation’. An interesting and useful concept worth exploring further in this rapid-changing world that demands more from us in less time than we’d like: think rapid protoyping, accelerated learning approaches, etc, etc!

In all, I reckon it’s the edge at which we live that pushes us to innovate. If we’re too comfortable what’s the urge? How do we then create the discomfort or disruption to continue to feed that urge in positive ways? Move to Nepal perhaps?

Maybe this isn’t such a bad idea: pushing something like FLNW2 in Thailand, for example, is a big move towards this type of disruption, just as working in the Western desert is (having just had my buddies from Jigalong visit Canberra recently), or “the Bronx”, or with prisoners, or in fact with anyone and anything that disrupts our status quo thinking about the world! That’s a big call for most - how about you?

Mobile Tagging Your World with Semapedia…

Alan’s picked up on the Semapedia links too…thanks Alan for driving further questions on this.

Actually, Alan promoted me to delve a little further into Wikipedia at the local level and I dug out the WikiProject Canberra! It’s a veritable rabbit warren that Wikipedia thing! :o)

[Image: WikiProject Canberra]

And indeed, how DO we explore Semapedia’s possibilities in our learning contexts? I’m still discovering what my own mobile phone is capable of doing! I’m sure it could probably get my washing done if I had the right application installed! :o)

What this (and Alan) has raised for me, is not just how these things might be possible in our educational contexts, but has me asking whether or not we are achieving real transferability of skills and ‘wonder’ about the use of technologies to enhance learning and teaching, in our professional development activities.

Technologies, I think, will continue to be misconstrued as a ‘fad’ or subsist at the edges unless we truly invest in and commit to using such tools, in line with (or by re-aligning) our strategic directions (within institutes and other stakeholder bodies), so as to build capability that directly impacts and shows benefits to (and for) our learners (and other stakeholders like industry groups). And also acknowledges that ICTs are a necessary life-skill/acquisition/experience that we should seek to develop in learners for the contemporary, networked world we live in.

I’d add this question to your question Alan; ‘how can we change our current paradigms to open up opportunities to explore such “cool tools” for greater use in educational contexts?’ What will it take for us to do so?

Hope to be able to talk more during your visit to the ACT, Alan, in line with your presentation on “being there”!

technorati tags:mobile, alan_levine, semapedia, wikipedia, situated_learning, strategy, educational_context, WikiProject_Canberra, ACT, tagging

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Reposted from OTN@CIT:

This from the del.icio.us wikieducator tag via sparkered.

A QR code generated from Wikipedia for use in physical spaces, equals Semapedia.

I tried it out using the kaywa reader and now have the Wikipedia entry to liminality on my phone as I write.

It works like this:

Image: Semapedia

Imagine some of the applications, if you will:

• quick lookup of definitions (those that apply to one’s workplace perhaps)
• find out more about an artist, locale, music band, suburb…
• orientation information within an institute or business or…

At present this is set up for Wikipedia and other ‘Wikisites’. If opened up to Wikiversity, Wikieducator, etc the possibilities are motivating!

technorati tags:QRcode, semacode, semapedia, wiki, wikipedia, mobile, mobile_resources, wikieducator

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Mobile learning (m-learning) content developers are advised to consult and use the general VET e-standards found on this website in combination with these specific m-learning recommendations.
* Mobile audio
* Mobile video
* Wireless data connectivity
* Mobile content
Further background information and support is also available.

m-learning - Recommended Standards - E-standards for Training

The m-learning standards project Leonard, John and I have been involved in, is now finalised with the launch of the standards Report, teacher’s Guide and other resources on the E-standards website.

The process has been an interesting one, especially given the rapid growth in the area of mobile technologies and their use in teaching and learning. As we compiled the Report and the Guide there were already new tools, models and reports coming out! It highlights that standards are usually preceded by practice, because innovation and experimentation waits for no one!

As is stated in the Guide itself:

Henry Lichstein (2002) claimed that standards follow practice, not lead it. So, you are encouraged to use the m-learning standards and this Guide to assist you in decision making around m-learning but don’t let them constrain you in experimenting and trialling new ideas and strategies in teaching with technology. Your new practices may well inform the standards of the future (pp.4-5).

And a big thank you to the reference group for keeping us on our toes, keeping things real and mostly keeping the project on track with what is really important, that is, teaching and learning!

Back in 2005, Jeff Han appeared on TED Talks and demonstrated some touch screen prototypes soon to come ‘out of the lab’. In light of Apple’s release of the iPhone, we will no doubt see more of this touch screen technology in the market and I hope in education over the coming decade!

Han demos image manipulation using hand gestures directly on the screen.

One comment I picked up from his talk here was about the $100 laptop - that perhaps we should be looking beyond the current trend and form in which our computing takes and begin to look at future possibilities in terms of accessibility and usability in human-computer interaction (HCI).

Image: http://laptop.media.mit.edu/ - MIT Media Laboratory

The design of the laptop, Han would say, still restricts us to using physical and material components like a stylus or keyboard. Han’s point is that we can remove the interface altogether so no ‘handbook’ is required and intuition reigns. Han speaks from a priviledged position though, although an egalitarian one - we need to start somewhere don’t we? I wonder what Iqbal Quadir would think of this, along with the new iPhone? :o)

I recommend viewing Han’s TED Talk - what do you think about this as a future for human-computer interaction in terms of greater access and usability for HCI, especially in less-priviledged parts of the world?

Also, for me, I certainly see how this parallels designing learning spaces and blending approaches (physically and otherwise) to enhance learning and engage learners and teachers alike. Rather than shutting in the world of computing - and our learning - it places technology squarely within our everyday lives so that we can celebrate our modernity (to poach a phrase from Alain de Botton’s TV series)!

technorati tags:human-computer, intuitive, interaction, HCI, TEDtalks, mobile, laptop, $100laptop, interface

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miniSeries: Episodic adventures for mobile phones

The ABC have pulled together some wonderful little movies that are mobile-sized! It costs you to download them to your phone, but you can preview them (in full) online as well. These movies would be good little tasters for your students, especially those studying communications, arts, moving imagery and so on, not to mention potential cross-subject activities!

The Perils of Flossy held my attention well - loved the combination of music with the visuals. Each episode is quite short (say, a couple of minutes, making downloading to your phone easier, and hopefully cheaper?). Each episode links well in true series fashion. This illustrates how series are constructed too - as viewed on television for example; that is, they consist of relevant narrative links from one episode to the next, along with overarching themes and strong characters, yet have an immediate impact, narratively speaking, within each episode.

Very nice learning tools in themselves, these little movies, as well as telling a good story!

Well done to the movie makers, the ABC and their miniSeries partners m.Net, South Aust Film Corporation and The Aust Network for Art and Technology (ANAT) for making these available.

technorati tags:mobile, movies, ABC, mini-series, filmmaking, mobilephone

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Mark van ‘t Hooft at Mobile Learning Redefined - Ubiquitous Thoughts (via Leonard) points to some work by Mike Sharples and others re-examining mobile learning; what it means, what it requires and what strategies might be employed to develop mlearning approaches further.

I was drawn to the three foci quoted below outlined by van ‘t Hooft :

Mike Sharples wrote a nice piece about this in October 2005, entitled “Re-thinking learning for the mobile age.” In it, he discusses three foci of the Kaleidoscope special interest group on the Philosophy of Technology Enhanced Learning:
1. distinguish what is special about learning in the mobile age compared to other types of learning activity.
2. a theory of mobile learning must embrace the considerable learning that occurs outside classrooms and lecture halls.
3. we must take account of the ubiquitous use.

These appear to me to be the overarching points with which to develop mobile learning strategies for organisations, communities, schools, networks and so on. These points allow us to critique our motives, structures and approaches to learning generally and our learners - as lifelong learners - more specifically.

How many organisations have a learning strategy, let alone a mobile learning strategy? What about a flexible learning plan? Or an elearning philosophy? What type of strategic plan does your organisation have?

My view is that we need our decision makers and managers to be reading about projects like this and work by the Mike Sharples of the world, so they can make informed decisions - at a strategic level - about the learning choices provided to our learners and remain relevant to learners whose worlds are full of work, life, family and yes, learning.

….and this is fast becoming a mantra around my workplace: it is the learner who is mobile, not the technology!

technorati tags:mike.sharples, mlearning, learning, strategy, mobile, projects, sharples, mobile.learning

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Gabcast! On the Move #2

This was an example phonecast to demonstrate both the capabilities of using weblogs with mobile devices and to illustrate the powerful sense of immediacy of the tools and the actions taken in using the tools.

WOW program
Originally uploaded by margoc.

I joined Lynsey for WOW, a spectacularly festive feast of fabric, faces, frenetic dancing feats and fancy facards! (Fffffhew!)

If you haven’t yet travelled to New Zealand, Wellington especially, then this is the best excuse for a trip, if you ever needed one! I can’t recommend this cultural event enough! :o)

We were even warmed up to the show by a WOW street parade and 12-foot-tall dancing butterflies!

This is a truly international event and a great cultural arts drawcard for NZ. Hats off to all involved, especially the amazingly talented designers - what vision!

“Mmmm, you could create a form of mobile-audio Haiku though,” continued that voice in my head.

Long conversations
beside blooming irises -
joys of life on the road
Matsuo Basho

Seeking - Walking the streets (Sept 26th, 2006)

Marica at Seeking reflects on the use of audioblogging, after my spending time in Wellington with her and her colleagues at the Open Polytechnic of NZ. I was particularly drawn to her thoughts about the Haiku and how a short piece of writing can convey much (in a similar way to an image that speaks a thousand words I suppose).

The haiku is a great metaphor for mobile learning, in that much is captured in a small ’space’. I have set up a Winksite called Mobile Explorations (for access via your mobile device, go to http://winksite.com and enter site ID # 17112) to capture these smaller moments that can be viewed and interacted with via a mobile device. Still in ‘testing’ phase, I have added a couple of haikus to the Zine, titled ‘Haiku thinking’. You can add your own haikus via the Guestbook if you wish. Here’s how it looks:

How can this be developed as a useful learning venture? Playful jottings and a few meaningful words can capture much of the essence of an experience in the same way images often do. It can enable the writer to develop ways of writing that convey a meaning or sense of an experience, just as we might interpret an image, its meaning, representation and structures, according to our position and frame of mind in time and space. Wu and Bergstraum describe this as the haiku moment:

It seems easiest to liken haiku to a photograph, which captures a moment in time. A pure photograph describes a scene, and this description causes an emotional response in its viewer. There is no caption on the photograph that tells us what emotional response we are to take from it. It is instead a simple moment in time, unencumbered.Haiku is the same thing. When a butterfly lands upon an open flower, what does the haiku poet take from this? The same thing that his reader will take from it when he describes the moment in verse. But he trusts his reader to sense the same emotion from his accurate description of the scene. He does not need to say “How beautiful!” in reference to the moment, because his words should evoke the correct response in his reader.

I often have jottings and snippets or phrases dotted around my desk on sticky notes, or written messily into notebooks (like my A5 laptop for example!) - even noted quickly in my mobile phone - and these hold meaning for me in ways a well-structured sentence may not.

Thus, from little things big things grow, as they say!

I’ll leave you with my try at a haiku:

Live out loud and soft:

Expect a newness within

Greet the world in song.

technorati tags:haiku, mobile, mlearning, seeking, marica.sevelj, winksite, writing, prose, poetry, learning, practice

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