"This is their generation; this is aimed at their generation," sixth-grade teacher Richard Ridpath said. "They are a cell phone, iPod, Xbox generation. This is just meeting [students] where they are."
Ridpath uses mobile devices with video and interactive applications as a supplement to his more traditional lesson.
Chesterfield, VA Superintendant Marcus J. Newsome said:
"It the past, it seems as though [the cell phone] has been a tool that's been disruptive to the teaching and learning process, but if there's a way to turn it around to our advantage, we need to investigate."
Mobile learning used to be solely associated with online post-secondary education. As technology evolves and preconceptions are lessened, mobile education is beginning to apply to younger and younger students.
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Eric Savitz writes the Technology Week column for Barron's and his business perspective on technology's changes is always refreshing. Case in point, his predictions for the Consumer Electronics Show, which begins January 7th:
[M]obile devices should be the big story. New phones are likely to be unveiled by Palm, Motorola and others. There will be a host of new e-book readers; keep your eye on the QUE from start-up Plastic Logic. The netbook surge rolls on, aided by variants known as smartbooks -- generally Linux-based, with non-Intel processors, and offering handy features like instant on. Even now-mundane devices like cameras and camcorders will offer wireless connectivity. Also expect a host of new tablet-based PCs, taking advantage of special features in still-nascent Windows 7.
Incidentally, we're offering Savitz' insights solely for their own merits and not to help convince our bosses to approve our last-minute CES travel request.
Hats off to the White House for embracing mobile as a
key communications tool in areas with
minimal Internet access. A White
House Blog post details the efforts of the White
House and State Department New Media teams to ensure that Tuesday's
speech by President Obama was made available to the Afghan people via mobile
technology.
Looking at
data on Whitehouse.gov, [there is not] a lot of traffic coming from
Afghanistan and Pakistan because Internet penetration
in the region is relatively low at 2% and 11% respectively. However, mobile
penetration is much higher. 52% of the 177 million people in Pakistan have at least 1 mobile device and 30% of
the 28.4 million in Afghanistan. Given this trend, [the White House]
produced short video clips of the President's segment to Afghans and had it
dubbed in Arabic,
Dari,
Pashto,
and Urdu
in order for them to be distributed locally on mobile devices. Given the small
screens on phones, subtitling wasn't an appropriate option. The original version
in English
is also available.
With your mobile phone, you can take care of banking, pay for parking, board a plane and stream old Saved by the Bell episodes. (OK, three out of four ain't bad.)
Until recently at least, conventional wisdom held that short and light content would be most popular on the mobile screen. But consumer tastes have a way of confounding conventional wisdom, at least according to an interesting article in MediaWatch.
According to Nielsen figures, longer drama programs are turning out to be the most popular mobile videos. That includes CSI, Heroes, and Lipstick Jungle. In a nod to the mobile lifestyle, CBS is also making viewing easier by dividing shows into shorter streams - a typical CSI episode has six or seven individual streams that allow viewers to pick up exactly where they left off earlier in the day.
Nielsen estimates that only about five percent of mobile users access video. But when you look at how quickly other apps like banking are taking off, it won't be long before CSI overtakes crosswords as the most popular pastime during the morning commute.
Last week tons of Americans came to town to celebrate the inauguration of our 44th President, Barack Obama. In addition to celebrating, they shared their day with friends, family, and the world. The day was history in the making - not only swearing in our nation's first African American President but creating a truly user-generated inauguration.
Jonathan mentioned in a previous post, the many ways citizens participated at "wireless woodstock." One famous couple that utilized their mobile to document the festivities was Ashton Kutcher and Demi Moore. Here's one of their mobile videos that they live streamed...
It's a new day and things will never again be the same.
No, I'm not talking about the new Administration since others at HuffPo have already captured that moment's magic. Instead I'm talking about the inauguration itself. Matt Richtel at The New York Times had it right - it was "a wireless Woodstock."
When it came to coverage, the three traditional news sources - the TV nets, radio, the wires - had company: the mobile phone user.
Never in U.S. history has a single event been so well documented from so many different angles as this inauguration. More important, never before have ordinary onlookers been so integral to the coverage.
For mobile users and app writers alike, this was the equivalent of opening night on Broadway. Take a look:
A company called PointAbout created a special GPS-related app for the inauguration that guided users to the Mall via Metro or street directions. It also offered to find free hotspots, inaugural balls and the nearest Starbucks.
CNN, The New York Times and other MSM actively solicited emails of real-time photos and commentary. Leading up to the inaugural, their homepages encouraged mobile users to send clips, vids and comments. Throughout the day, they displayed the images.
The image-sharing site Photobucket put its Inauguration Day photos on a separate, dedicated server. No word on how many photos have been uploaded but the company usually handles 7-10 million uploads a day.
The social media website FriendFeed rolled out a 300 percent increase in server capacity to handle inaugural and post-inaugural traffic.
None of this happened by accident. CNN reported that mobile carriers increased capacity by as much as 70 percent and it seems to have paid off.
So in addition to the inauguration staff, there's one more group that deserves to take a bow: tens of thousands of mobile users who gave the nation a unique view of a great event.
Originally posted on Huffington Post, January 22, 2009
To paraphrase a famous movie line, "Video's still big. It's the screen that got small."
An interesting report on the continued growth of mobile video came from Nielsen this week. As of third quarter 2008, people who used a mobile phone spent three hours per month on average watching mobile video. (By comparison, the average viewer spent 142 hours watching TV.)
But look at the trend: From Q2 to Q3, average mobile video usage increased from 195 to 217 minutes - an 11 percent increase and a pretty good quarterly growth rate!
The age breakdown isn't surprising, as younger viewers are the dominant video consumers, although the 18-24 figure seems oddly low:
Age
Average monthly usage
13-17
260 minutes
18-24
195 minutes
25-34
260 minutes
35-44
227 minutes
45-54
130 minutes
55-64
173 minutes
65+
Negligible
The real issue is how this surging growth will impact the wireless network. Video is data-intensive and according to PBS tech guru Robert Cringley, three Sling streams are enough to crash a typical EVDO cell. Also there’s the cost: It's a lot more expensive to deliver data wirelessly than on a fiber optic line.
We'll address these issues in upcoming blogs but for the moment, we’ll let this report speak for itself.
On Tuesday, November 4, Americans will go to the polls to cast their votes on Election Day. However, with high voter interest, millions of new voters, new rules and new voting technology, the day could be a little chaotic. In past elections, we've heard reports of long lines and other challenges at the polls, but in 2008, new mobile technologies will allow voters to address, circumvent and solve potential Election Day log-jams on the spot, as well as help document history in the making.
In 2000 and 2004, voter turnout was approximately 54 percent and 60 percent respectively. With even greater expectations this year, the 2008 election could have the highest voter turnout in modern history, possibly even beating the 1960 election's high water mark of 64 percent. The numbers could be record-breaking, and while that is great for democracy, it also could lead to potential problems for hopeful voters facing long lines and other obstacles at the polls.
A number of organizations are planning to use modern technology to handle Election Day issues, including getting proper addresses for and directions to polling sites, rides to the polls, and general voter information. Groups like Rock the Vote and Common Cause are working with Video the Vote and Twitter Vote Report to document voter experiences at the polls on Election Day. Voters can also call 1-866-OUR-VOTE or 1-888-Vv-Y-Vota to ask for real-time help or legal advice courtesy of the nonpartisan Election Protection coalition.
In addition to addressing potential election issues, mobile technology allows users to document historic moments in this election cycle through words, pictures and video, enabling everyone to become a citizen-journalist. At rallies across the country, cell phones are held high in the air to take pictures of the crowds and using Qik, a mobile video application, supporters can live stream the candidates' speeches on their own websites. On CNN, Rick Sanchez regularly uses Twitter to gather information and shares viewers' tweets on the air. And all of this is in addition to how the campaigns have used mobile technology to connect with voters.
YouTube and PBS have also collaborated on Video Your Vote, a channel for users to share their Election Day experiences and the New York Times is hosting the Polling Place Photo Project, where voters can submit photos of their Election Day experiences. Many news organizations like CNN will also be updating their mobile sites with election news and results as they come in.
If the predictions hold, Election Day will bring a few more momentous occasions, including the highest turnout in a modern election (more than 64 percent), a record number of young voters (18-29 year-olds), and either the first African-American president or the first female Vice President. And mobile technology will help voters properly exercise their franchise, get to the right polling places, and record and share these momentous events as they happen to make November 4 the most documented Election Day ever.
Last night we attended Showstoppers at CTIA. Showstoppers provides a unique opportunity for a few companies to showcase their apps before the main event on Wednesday.
In any case, it was a pleasure interviewing Candice Malmstrom of Newber. Newber is an application that utilizes location-based technology to sync you with your strongest connection - at work, home and play!
In 2007, approximately 14 million Americans recycled their used cell phones, according to the Environmental Protection Agency. Environmentally-conscious consumers and companies are leading the charge to reduce America’s e-waste.
In recent years, wireless users have become a favorite target for new state and local taxes. Today, state and local taxes and fees average about 14 percent of consumers’ mobile phone bills.
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Tags: Education, Mobile Video