Social Learning Systems

Mobile Learning Handbook

This ADL Mobile Learning Handbook is compilation of mobile learning resources. This is a living document and will be regularly updated. Please send any suggestions for additions or changes to [email protected]. There is a condensed version (called the ADL mLearning Guide for demo use on a mobile device) also available through a browser at http://mlearn.adlnet.gov or in various platform stores.

This Handbook is separated into ten sections:

1. Basics - What mobile learning (or mLearning) means, its capabilities and use opportunities, potential benefits and common concerns.
2. Planning - List of choices to consider for appropriate use of mobile devices in learning, including questions to assist in planning.
3. Examples - Examples of mobile learning projects and initiatives of interest.
4. Best Practices - Lists of tips for instructional designers and developers.
5. Learning Content - Tips and best practices for mobile learning.
6. Development Options - Tools, native applications and mobile web apps; pros and cons of both types.
7. Design Considerations - Information on hardware models, features, operating systems, displays, accessibility, connectivity and other advanced mobile capabilities.
8. Mobile Learning Tools - Products available for the creation, deployment and management of mobile content.
9. Resources - Recommended links for additional information on mobile learning.
10. Glossary definitions.

Note: ADL does not endorse any products mentioned in this handbook. Specific devices and applications are provided for informational purposes only to help introduce the concepts related to mobile development for learning or human performance support.

ADL LINK

via sites.google.com

Reforming education: The great schools revolution | The Economist

FROM Toronto to Wroclaw, London to Rome, pupils and teachers have been returning to the classroom after their summer break. But this September schools themselves are caught up in a global battle of ideas. In many countries education is at the forefront of political debate, and reformers desperate to improve their national performance are drawing examples of good practice from all over the world.

Why now? One answer is the sheer amount of data available on performance, not just within countries but between them. In 2000 the Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) at the OECD, a rich-country club, began tracking academic attainment by the age of 15 in 32 countries. Many were shocked by where they came in the rankings. (PISA’s latest figures appear in table 1.) Other outfits, too, have been measuring how good or bad schools are. McKinsey, a consultancy, has monitored which education systems have improved most in recent years.

Read the entire article here.

 

via www.economist.com

Work-Life Balance is Not a Perk - Talent Management

A very interesting piece about workforce generations and how to attract and retain employees. Lots of articles on this topic lately, and this is one of the best.

Read the full article here.

 

e-Learning Acupuncture: Educate the Mobile Generation: Convert WORD documents to ePub and MOBI

You’ve seen the headlines and heard the buzz as much as I have: smartphones are taking over the planet, e-books are selling like hotcakes, and, tablets like the iPad are cannibalizing laptop and desktop computer sales. It doesn’t take a rocket surgeon to conclude that Mobile computing in the hottest trend in technology since electricity was invented. With this fact in mind, I asked myself this question – are my course materials mobile-friendly? Can my students easily get the materials in my course onto their mobile device be it an iPad, iPhone, iPod Touch, Android Smartphone, Sony eBook Reader, Amazon Kindle, or Barnes & Noble Nook, etc.

 

EXTREMELY USEFUL STEP BY STEP TIPS>>>

Read the full article here.

via erictremblay.blogspot.com

The Ubiquity of Informal Learning: Beyond the 70/20/10 Model by Ben Betts : Learning Solutions Magazine

To quote EDC’s informal learning thesis, “informal learning is ubiquitous” (p. 178). In work, as in life, informal learning has always been present. It isn’t a new idea and it certainly isn’t powered by the internet. To generalize on how much of our learning is sourced from informal happenstance is somewhat missing the point in my mind.

 

-- An interesting look at the origin and validity of the 70/20/10 model. --

Read the full article here.

via www.learningsolutionsmag.com

Teachers must think internet-first | Education | The Guardian

Education and skills professionals are at the frontline in tackling a key cause of worklessness. This work, if the CBI is right, will only become more urgent as the UK moves further towards a high-skilled jobs market, and opportunities for those without qualifications fall sharply.

Digital skills are now vital for education and employment: we know that you're 25% more likely to get work when you have web skills, and, once in that job, you'll earn 10% more. Unison, the biggest public sector union, has just conducted a skills survey of some of its 1.3 million members. Almost half of middle-aged, low-paid women (cleaners, catering staff, carers) argued that lack of digital savvy was their most serious skills gap. Our figures show that 4 million of the 8.7 million UK adults who have never used the internet are from our hardest-to-reach groups.

Read the complete article here.

via www.guardian.co.uk

Evidence-Based Training: Debunking the Myth of Learning Styles « Workplace Psychology

In “Evidence-Based Training Methods: A Guide for Training Professionals,” Ruth Clark (2010) states that one of the biggest myths perpetuated by training professionals is accommodating different learning styles.

“The learning style myth leads to some very unproductive training approaches that are counter to modern evidence of what works…The time and energy spent perpetuating the various learning style myths can be more wisely invested in supporting individual differences that are proven to make a difference—namely, prior knowledge of the learner.” (Clark, 2010, p. 10)

Read more of this review of Ruth Clark's book here.

Clark, R.C. (2010). Evidence-Based Training Methods: A Guide for Training Professionals. Alexandria, VA: ASTD Press.

via workplacepsychology.net

New Jive Study Unveils Social Business is Top Executive Strategic Imperative -- PALO ALTO, Calif., June 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ --

PALO ALTO, Calif., June 29, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Jive Software today announced the results of a new study of 902 U.S.-based knowledge workers that was conducted by Penn Schoen Berland and commissioned by Jive. The study revealed that Social Business is increasingly perceived as a strategic executive imperative in the enterprise. Seventy-eight percent of the executives surveyed recognized that having a social strategy is critical to the future success of their businesses.

"Social is now open for business, and Jive is at the center of Social Business," said Tony Zingale, Jive CEO. "Today's executives realize that the New Way to business is here and that they must have a social strategy or risk falling behind. The results of this survey underscore the importance and growth of the Social Business market."

The study, called the Jive Social Business Index 2011, was conducted in May 2011 and surveyed 301 executives, 301 working millennials and 300 general knowledge workers at both large (1000+ employees) and mid-size companies (500 – 999 employees) across various industries.

The Jive Social Business Index 2011 identified three key findings:

• Social Business is a top executive strategic imperative;
• App Stores are gaining traction in the enterprise; and
• Email usage is growing but is not solving communication challenges in the enterprise.
  
  Read the article here.

via www.prnewswire.com

When Social Networking Goes 'Live' -- THE Journal

One doesn't immediately connect the country of Sweden with the Midwestern state of Iowa, but for five students in Shaelynn Farnsworth's senior English class, those ties are very strong and very recent. After connecting with a teacher at the International School of Helsingborg via Twitter, Farnsworth, a freshman and senior teacher at the BCLUW Community School District in Conrad, turned online social networking interactions into a trip of a lifetime for her students.

Here, Farnsworth discusses how social networking in the classroom came full circle and resulted in hands-on learning for her students.

Read the full article here.

via thejournal.com

Ministry of Education, Singapore: Press Releases

An interesting look at 21st Century Learning Skills in Singapore via Elliott Masie.

The Ministry of Education (MOE) will implement a new framework to enhance the development of 21st century competencies in our students. This will underpin the holistic education that our schools provide to better prepare our students to thrive in a fast-changing and highly-connected world.

 As part of this effort, MOE will strengthen the quality of Physical, Art and Music education. These subjects enable students to develop physical robustness, enhance their creative and expressive capacities, as well as shape their personal, cultural and social identity.

via www.moe.gov.sg

Read the complete article here.