A design toolkit for emerging learning landscapes supported by ubiquitous computing
The widespread use of mobile
devices and their integration in our everyday activities is changing the way we
communicate, share information, and learn. The rapid adoption of powerful
mobile devices also offers new opportunities to support teaching and learning.
For many users, mobile devices along with different types of computers are
always connected, providing a constant stream of digital content to and from
people and thereby adding new layers to the everyday information landscape.
These emergent trends are changing communication and collaboration patterns,
but they have not yet been effectively leveraged for the field of education.
Nearly 20 years ago, it was
argued that the limitations of computer use for education in the coming decades
would likely be less a result of technological limitations than a result of
limited human imagination and the constraints of old habits and social
structures. These two latest behaviors are still observable in many of today's
classrooms. Therefore, different strategies are needed to explore and promote
innovative educational practices supported by mobile and ubiquitous
technologies, and this thesis will argue that design can be the catalyst for
such a change.
The main research question to be
addressed in this thesis relates to what new approaches can be developed to
design emerging learning landscapes supported by ubiquitous computing. In order
to investigate this question, different design approaches are used to bring
together the perspectives of technology-enhanced learning, ubiquitous
computing, and interaction design. The empirical work presented in this
dissertation is based on the activities and outcomes that emerged from three
projects that included informal learning activities, inquiry-based science
learning, and mathematics learning inside and outside the formal classroom. The
most salient design approaches were identified from a comparative analysis of
the projects, and this provided the foundations of a design toolkit. The
intention of creating and using such a design toolkit is to provide a set of
guidelines for researchers, designers, teachers, and other stakeholders to
tackle the challenges of designing innovative learning activities supported by
ubiquitous technologies.
Keywords: Technology-enhanced
learning, mobile and ubiquitous computing, design-based research, interaction
design
Akademisk avhandling som för avläggande av filosofie doktorsexamen vid Linnéuniversitetet försvaras vid offentlig disputation, 16 november 2010, klockan 10.15 i sal Weber, Hus K, Växjo
Invite to Ph.D. Defense and Poster here
A pdf of Ph.D. thesis excluding the publications here
Full pdf of thesis and publications here
Publications in the thesis: Download all the papers here
Spikol, D., & Milrad, M.
(2008). Physical Activities and Playful Learning Using Mobile Games. Research and Practice in Technology Enhanced
Learning. Special issue on Mobile and Ubiquitous Learning Environments.
Vol:3 No: 3 pp.275- 295.
Spikol, D. (Forthcoming 2010). Design
Strategies for Developing Mobile Collaborative Learning Platforms. Book chapter
in Digital Content Creation: Creativity,
Competence, Critique, Edited by Kristen Drotner and Kim Christian Schrøder,
Oxford, Peter Lang.
Spikol, D., Milrad, M., Maldonado,
H., & Pea, R. (2009). Integrating Co-Design Practices into the Development
of Mobile Science Collaboratories. Proceedings of the 9th IEEE International Conference on Advanced Learning Technologies
(ICALT 2009) held on July 15-17, 2009 in Riga, Latvia.
Spikol D. & Elisasson,, J. (Forthcoming 2010)
Lessons from Designing Geometry Learning Activities that Combine Mobile and 3D
Tools, Proceedings of the 6th IEEE WMUTE
International Conference on Wireless, Mobile and Ubiquitous Technologies in
Education WMUTE 2010 to be held in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, April 12-16th,
2010.
Spikol, D., Milrad, M. Svensson,
M., Pettersson, O. & Persson, M. (2008). Mobile Collaboration Tools and
Systems to Support Ubiquitous Learning. Proceedings of the Fourth Annual Conference on Collaboration Technologies 2008,
Wakayama, Japan August 30-31, 2008.
Vogel, B., Spikol, D., Kurti, A,
& Milrad, M., (Forthcoming 2010)
Integrating mobile, web and sensory technologies to support
inquiry-based science learning Proceedings of the 6th IEEE WMUTE International Conference on Wireless, Mobile and
Ubiquitous Technologies in Education WMUTE 2010 to be held in Kaohsiung,
Taiwan, April 12-16th, 2010.
A quick note: It is quite common that Swedish doctoral dissertations in the field of Computer and Information Science are built upon a series of published scientific articles that are included as part of the thesis. Below are the six papers that make up the empirical section of my thesis. Additionally, the work in my Ph.D. thesis continues from my licentiate thesis published in 2008, Playing and Learning Across Locations: Identifying Factors for the Design of Collaborative Mobile Learning. You can view or download the (pdf) here.*
D*TELL by
Daniel Spikol is licensed under a
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sites.google.com.
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