HOW TO DESIGN A MOBILE LEARNING ENVIRONMENT

Recommendations based on student perceptions

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Pablo Rebaque-Rivas prebaque@uoc.eduCommunity Initiatives (Office of Learning Technologies)Universitat Oberta de Catalunya (UOC)

Universitat Oberta de Catalunya

E-learning university

Virtual campus and virtual classrooms

Digital contents in different formats

Continuous assessment

Combine their studies with other activities, in particularly their jobs

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Virtual campus on mobile devicesINTRO

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Virtual campus on mobile devices

Webmail

Virtual classrooms

Agenda

Secretary’s office

INTRO

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Virtual campus on mobile devicesINTRO

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Adaptation of the UOC Virtual Campus for mobile

browsers

A native app of the Virtual Campus

A native e-mail client app

Mobile developments and UCD

User-centered design

INTRO

The user-student

What do students want to find?

Adapted for mobile browsers, a native app,

or both?

A single app or different apps?

?

INTRO

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UOC case study

Focus group with students

UOC mobile developments currently available

Students’ patterns of use and connection habits

Possible improvements and potential developments in the future

METHOD

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METHOD

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Adaptation of the UOC Virtual Campus for mobile browsers

A native app of the Virtual Campus

A native e-mail client app

UOC case study

UOC case study

Adaptation of the UOC Virtual Campus for mobile browsers

A native app of the Virtual Campus

A native e-mail client app

satisfaction improvements opinionawareness use

UOC mobile developments currently available

Possible improvements and potential developments in the future

Students’ patterns of use and connection habits

METHOD

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Uses of the Virtual Campus to get Information and to “work”

Laptops or desktop computers information and working

Smartphones less frequent

daily updates

communication areas of the Virtual Campus

Tablets to view/read documents

RESULTS Students’ patterns of use and connection habits

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Students’ patterns of use and connection habits

Uses of the Virtual Campus to get Information and to “work”

Laptops or desktop computers information and working

Smartphones less frequent

daily updates

communication areas of the Virtual Campus

Tablets to view/read documents

…not conclusive, they were not aware of the mobile developments…

RESULTS

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The Virtual Campus for mobile browsers

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The Virtual Campus for mobile browsers

Little awareness

It contains the relevant information for connections from a mobile device

They missed adapted sections for Secretary’s Office and Tutor

It is only necessary to adapt those sections they were most likely to connect to from a mobile device

RESULTS

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The Virtual Campus native app

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The Virtual Campus native app

Little awareness

It only contains the relevant information for connections from a mobile device

Modern, innovative and functional

They missed adapted sections for Secretary’s Office and Tutor

RESULTS

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The e-mail client app

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The e-mail client app

Quick solution for accessing their UOC e-mail

Too specific and not sufficiently comprehensive

Better all the information in a single app

Different tools creates a degree of uncertainty

RESULTS

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Possible improvements and potential developments in the future

The native app, the most likely to be used

Suggested functions file storage and sharing system instant messaging tool

Conventional computers and mobile devices will be combined

Tablets in the near future an active part of their studies and the main device for connecting to the VC The ideal solution would be an offer of the services that are fully functional

via mobile devices

RESULTS

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Some conclusions

The mobile developments answer to their current connection needs

The native app is preferred among the other developments a single tool only for the most relevant services

Mobile developments portray the UOC as a modern, innovative university

Mobile learning environment is already an integral part of students’ day-to-day activities

Universities should provide user-driven online learning environments to their students

CLOSING

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Some recommendations

A single native app, the best option

What the student-user requests, what it should be found in mobile developments

Devices and their contexts of use

Document management function

Instant messaging function

Virtual Campus app = a good impression

CLOSING

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Thanks!

This paper has been done within the

framework of the MAVSEL project:

Mining, data Analysis and Visualization

based on Social models in E-Learning,

TIN2010 21715-C02-02.

Pablo Rebaque-Rivas prebaque@uoc.edu

Eva Patricia Gil-Rodríguez Irene Manresa-Mallol

Community Initiatives (Office of Learning Technologies)

CSEDU 2014