| Brief Overview: |
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| The increase in use of mobile devices and availability of wireless networks means that mobile devices can be used in an increasingly wide variety of ways in teaching, research and administration. |
Getting started: getting connected
What
Knowing how to connect securely to the internet is the first step in making the most of mobile technologies such as smart phones, tablets and laptops. Once you are connected to the University’s wireless service Eduroam you can then access a range of services such as email and calendars.
How
Finding and capturing information
What
Mobile technologies such as iPads and smartphones can help students contribute and share content during sessions, through doing internet searches, and through capturing data such as photos or video clips. Encouraging co-creation of content is a good way to engage students with the session, supports collaboration when students share devices and information, and is a useful means of introducing low-stakes activities into the lecture theatre.
How
In-class participation with mobile devices
What
There are various tools that can be used to allow students to interact with each other, the tutor and even the wider world. Polleverywhere is an online polling system that allows students to make responses to questions using their mobile devices or computers. It can be used to increase engagement, gauge student understanding of a topic, and gather feedback. Using Twitter in lectures is a simple way to get feedback from students using a hashtag. Many students already have Twitter accounts and are familiar with using hashtags, and feedback can easily be displayed to the class via a web browser. Using Twitter also means that people outside the class can also easily participate.
How
- Polleverywhere
- Introducing Polleverywhere video
- A guide to using Twitter in higher education
- See also the section on using Nearpod in lectures
Using Apps
What
Various platforms used by the University have Apps which can be used on smartphones and tablets. These include learning and teaching tools such as Blackboard and Turnitin, as well administrative tools such as Office 365 and SharePlus which gives access to Sharepoint sites.