Learning: Is there an app for that?
October 22, 2010
A mobile media revolution that is changing the lives of adults, and now children of all ages, is under way across the globe. This report focuses on how new forms of digital media are influencing very young children and their families in the United States and how we can deploy smart mobile devices and applications-apps, for short-in particular, to help advance their education. It does so in three parts: Part One discusses new trends in smart mobile devices, specifically the pass-back effect, which is when an adult passes his or her own device to a child. Part Two presents the results of three new studies that were undertaken to explore the feasibility and effectiveness of using apps to promote learning among preschool- and early-elementary-aged children. Though designed to complement one another, each study approached mobile learning from a different angle. Finally, Part Three discusses the implications these findings have for industry, education, and research.
Appendix A
Appendix B
Appendix C
Related Report:
iLearn: A Content Analysis of the iTunes App Store’s Education Section by Carly Shuler, Ed.M.
Industry Brief: Pockets of Potential: Using Mobile Technologies to Promote Children’s Learning by Carly Shuler, Ed.M.
Related Presentation:
Mobile Phone Learning: K-12 Students
Carly Shuler, Ed.M. presented Learning: Is there an app for that? to a group at Teachers College at Columbia University.View the presentation in its entirety.