With the introduction of mobile devices as a teaching aid, new ways of using such devices are being established. The fact that mobile devices are available everywhere makes them the ideal device to support context-aware learning.
Mobile devices such as smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs) and tablets can offer appropriate assistance to the learner when required, without distracting attention on the real objects being explored.
Location-based educational activities can take place anywhere but they are usually carried out in sites of historical, cultural or natural interest, where learning is combined with fun beyond the frames set by formal education.
Fieldtrips can take on a whole new dimension by letting users navigate through a place while learning about related items on the mobile device in the form of audio, text, images, video or even interactive quizzes, which can be triggered through a Global Positioning System.
A study focusing on the use of mobile devices in location-aware multimedia narratives for learning was carried out in Malta. Design issues and educational use of such applications were studied.
The research focused mainly on the reactions of users to structured narratives where control is taken over by the system. Participants had the opportunity to use a tailor-made location-aware application installed on a given PDA on a local heritage trail.
The application helped them explore the different points of interest through a fictitious narrative that was automatically triggered as soon as the user reached particular spots. Questions were asked on what was being observed and users had to go back if they answered incorrectly.
The overall reaction was positive. Users explored the chosen heritage site in a new way by integrating real historical content in a fictitious narrative.
The physical and digital aspects of this activity were seamlessly connected to provide an innovative learning process. The system did not interfere with the users’ interaction with the artefacts and the narrative helped them feel immersed in two parallel worlds, one real and one virtual.
The different types of learning observed through the use of this technology, together with further discussion regarding factors that could have influenced such results, were presented in a dissertation for a Master of Arts degree in Digital Technology and Communication in Education at the University of Manchester.
Ms Spina Briffa has read this degree following the award of a STEPS scholarship, which is part-financed by the EU – European Social Fund.