[LINK] Mobile Learning Seminar at Monash Caulfield

[Philip Dearman]

Apologies for Cross Posting

The Centre for Advancement of Learning and Teaching (CALT), the School 
of Humanities, Communications & Social Sciences (HUMCASS) and the Open 
and Distance Learning Association of Australasia (ODLAA) invite you to a 
lunchtime seminar on mobile learning, by Agnes Kukulska-Hulme, titled

Mobile learning is coming of age – what are the implications?

Time/Location: 16th October, 1-2pm, Caulfield Campus of Monash 
University (Room C3.22)

Light refreshments will be available.

For further information: Philip.Dearman at arts.monash.edu.au

For information on getting to Caulfield, see 
http://www.monash.edu.au/campuses/caulfield.html

Abstract
The field of mobile learning may be defined at a simple level as 
learning with portable devices such as mobile phones, PDAs, ultra-mobile 
PCs and personal media players. At a deeper level, it’s a new way of 
learning that connects new knowledge with context and location, and is 
in tune with changing patterns of work and study. What are the 
characteristics of mobile learning, and how have they been exploited in 
various innovative projects to date? Recent research on ‘learning 
design’ has given a renewed impetus to the question of how to design for 
mobile and wireless learning. At the same time, profound changes in 
everyday computer usage brought about by social networking software and 
user-generated content have called into question the very idea that it 
is up to educators to be in charge of designing a learning experience – 
learners themselves may sometimes be better equipped to take the lead. 
This presentation will give an overview of mobile learning with a focus 
on how it is changing and how it challenges educators to ask fundamental 
questions about the interplay of technology and learning.

Dr Agnes Kukulska-Hulme is a senior lecturer in educational technology 
and Deputy Director of The Open University's Institute of Educational 
Technology, where she convenes the TeleLearning research group and has 
chaired the production of the global Masters course Innovations in 
eLearning. Agnes has been working in mobile learning since 2001 and is 
the co-editor of Mobile Learning: A Handbook for Educators and Trainers, 
published by Routledge, London. Agnes advises her university on mobile 
learning with reference to the needs of distance learners. She has led 
several funded projects, including case studies of wireless and mobile 
learning in the post-16 sector, and a ‘landscape study’ on the use of 
mobile and wireless technologies for learning and teaching. She also led 
the literature review for a project on the use of Tablet PCs in schools. 
Her current projects include surveys of user-driven innovation and a 
staff development project using Qtek smartphones. Agnes’ background is 
in foreign language learning and from this perspective she has a long 
standing research interest in user interface design for effective 
communication and usability.