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Recently, Bill Gates has argued that cell phones, not laptop computers, hold the most promise for the spread of one-to-one comput-ing, particularly for students with limited re- sources and especially for students from developing nations. Gates’ assertion is due to the ever-increasing number of phones now available to the world at re- duced cost, the growing computing power of these devices, and their growing body of software and ap- plications. M-learning—a nascent movement to turn the ubiquitous devices into tools of learning—is being led by universities. However, K–12 science teachers are also finding that cell phones offer many exciting options for their professional lives. Many of you may already have experimented with having students use a phone’s built-in camera to create video clips or video blogs, access collaborative tools or websites, and work cooperatively through the use of text messaging.
We recognize that in some schools cell phones have to be turned off or perhaps kept in lockers to avoid mis-use, but we hope to demonstrate in this article how they can be used under super vision to assist learning. There is no question that the uninitiated will at first look upon the use of phones in learning with suspicion, but this is often the case when new technologies emerge in schools. However, the sheer proliferation of mobile phones in today’s world makes it likely that they will soon find a spot in the classroom alongside personal computers, whiteboards, and the internet.
Phoning it in Many middle school students already own cell phones, and these devices accompany them. Even the most basic phones are now able to support educational functions, including the following:
Calculators—Students can use them to perform • calculations related to fieldwork.
Cell phones for science by Robert A. Lucking, Edwin P. Christmann, and Mervyn J. Wighting
Digital cameras—Students can use them to docu-• ment a variety of things for presentations and reports. Field trips can be filmed and incorporated into digital diaries. Internet access—Many phones have wireless • Internet access, thus opening up a world of possi- bilities for class use. In this mode they are mini- computers, and students can use them to research data and to explore related sites. Students can subscribe to podcasts that you produce for them or external podcasts recommended by you. Dictionaries—Students for whom English is a • second language can quickly quer y the definition of a word, and all students can quer y unfamiliar scientific terms.
Text messaging for free Since the vast majority of students own phones and use text messaging often, you may well want to make use of their inclinations to remind them of impor tant class events or assignments, and you can do so free of any charge. The website Text for
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Free (www.text for free.net) of- fers computer users an online ser vice for sending SMS (Shor t Message Ser vice the common protocol for texting) messages to phones of almost any ser- vice provider. In fact, you could be texting friends and students without even owning a phone by using a computer. With this on- line ser vice, you can avoid any costs, but more impor tantly, you can send group text messages to your entire class. The site’s Con- tact Manager (Figure 1) allows you to create groups composed of your students’ cell phones. Perhaps equally im- por tant, you can schedule messages in advance. So, for example, you may know when you have scheduled major exams, and you can automatically remind students which chapters the test will cover through a prescheduled text message.
Transcribed communications Busy teachers may need to be in touch with students at odd times, but even in these days of constant con- nectivity, you may find it difficult to reach a single student or an entire class while super vising lunch duty or coaching a spor t. If, for example, you realize that you didn’t provide sufficient clarification about the date of a homework assignment or exam, you can send a message from your cell phone that will be transcribed and emailed to your entire class.
To do this, you need to establish an account with Jott (www.jott.com, $12 a year). Use the Contact Man- ager to set up groups such as “Period 1 Students” and provide the email address of each. You then can simply phone the toll-free Jott number, indicate for whom you want to leave a message, and then speak the words you want to convey. Your message will be transcribed either by voice-recognition software or by a human transcriptionist and sent in the form of a text email to the contact list members’ email addresses.
Sophisticated phones Many science teachers, as well as phone-finicky students, are migrating to ever more sophisticated devices—many of which now have capabilities that
Contact Manager for text messaging groupsFIGURE 1
classify them as smar tphones. These devices can be loaded with a variety of software programs, and there are many now on the market at a price below $10 that appeal specifically to science teachers. Be- low is a brief list. If you are interested in purchasing one of these, you can simply Google it and add the word “smar tphone.”
A• ll-Calculator—A scientific calculator for particu- larly knotty problem-solving. Funk & Wagnalls Geography Encyclopedia—Over • 7,000 entries coving geography, geology, world facts, politics and more. First Aid Plus—A good reference to have when an • unexpected medical emergency arises. Pocket Stars SP ($15)—A star chart as near as • your pocket that is so good it has been called a virtual planetarium.
Most smar tphones feature the functionality of a personal organizer. Many of fer a qWEr TY key- board, a touch screen, a built-in camera, an acceler- ometer, a built-in GPS, the ability to read business documents in a variety of formats such as PDF, and software for playing music, browsing photos, view- ing video clips, and browsing the internet. For those who like Google applications, Gmail, Google Calen- dar, and Google Maps are available. like computers, these devices can display documents, spreadsheets, and presentations. Though users can transpor t files, make editorial changes, and review selected items of content on the go, the phone screen size prevents significant document production on the device.
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A new world of apps Apple’s iPhone and iTouch (the latter nearly the same device as the former, but minus the contracted phone ser vice) are expensive and may be out of reach of many students, but a science teacher will find a whole range of additional applications that are available for these devices via the iTunes App Store. Apple estimates that there are now more than 25,000 applications available in the store; most of these are ver y inexpensive to ob- tain, and many are totally free. Many of these apps are suitable for use in science lessons (see Figure 2). The following are some of our favorites.
Evernote Teachers have to keep track of hundreds of slivers of information each day, and now Evernote provides an app and related website to help you to remem- ber and find the information you need. Instead of writing stuf f down on random pieces of paper, you use your phone to clip text, take a photo of text, or
make audio notes and then use the Evernote app to send that information to the Evernote website where it will be indexed, stored, and available for you to search whenever you wish. Your information is syn- chronized both with your phone and computer, and that means that you can either search your informa- tion directly from your phone or any computer at any location to find that same information. The power of this arrangement is how each addition is made im- mediately searchable, creating a vir tual, searchable scratch pad that never runs out of paper.
eReader If you find yourself monitoring a study hall but want to catch up on your reading, grab ereader. You’ll be able to read free eBooks available all over the in- ternet, or you can choose to buy them from www. ereader.com, www.fictionwise.com and other e-book retailers. E-reader puts e-books right at your finger- tips on your iPhone.
A sample of science-related applicationsFIGURE 2
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Robert A. Lucking is a professor and graduate program director at Old Dominion University in Norfolk, Virginia. Edwin P. Christmann (edwin.christmann@sru.edu) is a professor, chairman of the secondary education department, and graduate coordinator of the math- ematics and science teaching program at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania. Mervyn J. Wighting is an associate professor of education at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia.
Google mobile You can instantly quer y the search giant Google us- ing this app, and Google Mobile will even support search by voice. The voice function uses the device’s motion detector to activate. raise the phone to your ear and wait for the beep. Say your search term and let Google do its magic.
Unlike the iTouch, which can easily function as a storage device for files, the iPhone isn’t really designed to store and carr y files. For a mere $10, you can solve this problem and not have to carr y around another device with the iPhoneDrive, which allows you to keep all your materials in one place. iPhoneDrive simplifies transferring files to and from your iPhone through an inter face that allows you to drag and drop files in either direction between your phone and your computer. While the iPhone does not let you browse all files on your computer, it does feature a preview image window on the right side of the inter face. Additionally, the software shows when the iPhone is connected and how much space you have left for file storage.
Science only A variety of apps have been released for science teach- ers. For a list of the top 10 life-science-related apps for the iPhone, visit http://my.biotechlife.net/2009/01/20/ top-10-life-science-related-apps-for-the-iphone-and-ipod- touch. Among those that made the list is labTimer, which allows for four separate timers with descrip- tions. This program is simple, intuitive, and, above all, useful. Also on the list is Molecules, which allows you to rotate, zoom in, and zoom out to study 3D models of molecules.
New GPS possibilities—even indoors iPhones now of fer A-GPS (Assisted GPS), which combines signals from GPS satellites, Wi-Fi hot spots, and cellular towers to provide ver y accurate location information. If GPS is available, iPhone dis- plays a blue GPS indicator, but if you’re out of the line of sight of a GPS satellite (in your classroom), iPhone finds you via a Wi-Fi hot spot or by using cellular towers. And the size of a location circle tells you how accurately iPhone is able to calculate that location: The smaller the circle, the more accurate the location. Given this capability, companies such as iNavX (www.inavx.net) have adapted software for the iPhone so that those of you who live near an
ocean can even plot potential voyages with your stu- dents, including plotted waypoints and accommoda- tions for tide cycles.
A built-in physics lab One feature of iPhone that will quickly capture the attention of science teachers is its ability to detect and respond to motion, a capability credited to the built-in accelerometer. When you rotate iPhone from por trait to landscape, the accelerometer detects the movement and changes the display accordingly. The accelerometer inside iPhone uses three elements: a silicon mass, a set of silicon springs, and an electri- cal current. The silicon springs measure the posi- tion of the silicon mass using the electrical current. rotating iPhone causes a fluctuation in the electrical current passing through the silicon springs. Science teachers who keep one foot in the world of physics can apply their creativity by designing a whole new range of experiments employing the function of the accelerometer built into the phone. While a creative mind will suffice for simple experiments, other new apps from entirely dif ferent fields are also avail- able. For example, one company (Dynolicius, www. dynolicious.com) now sells an app for $13 to test car per formance; the device is able to “feel” the accel- eration of the car, and the measured g-forces are fed into a vehicle dynamics model.
Answering the call While there will always be skeptics who question the place of cell phones in schools, other technolo- gies have gone through similar tests of practicality and demonstrated usefulness. Chances are that you have a cell phone within reach while you are reading this ar ticle. If so, we encourage you to check out the many applications available that can turn this ubiqui- tous device into a power ful classroom tool. n
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