Emerging Technologies in Education - PDA

PDA stands for Personal Digital Assistant.
A PDA is generally viewed as a handheld device that provides, as a bare minimum, electronic versions of the functions one would expect of a paper-based personal organiser e.g. diary, calendar, address book, to-do lists, note and memo pads, and clock (Anderson, 2004). It's basically a compact computer that you can hold in your hand. The PDA's consists of two main Operating Systems: the Palm and Pocket PC.


All PDA's include the following features: datebook/organizer that enables you to input meetings and appointments and a to-do-list; a memo pad for note taking and a calculator for mathematical problem solving; compose email and send on HotSync or wireless; an address book listing your contacts; and an onscreen keyboard that allows you to type with the touch screen and your stylus. Some PDA's, such as Palm/Pocket PC, allow you to hand write instead of type and most have a Back light for using in the dark or dim lighting.


Advantages for usage in the classroom:

• Students have access to information at the moment that the information is needed.


• Essential resources can be easily stored.


• Eliminates the need to carry several thick books.


• Student's create, name and organize folders.


• Store relevant research articles.


• Students in the classroom can work collaboratively on a project.


• Graphics and photographs can be retrieved instantly for use as a reference tool in any environment.

In my class, I would incorporate games into the classroom where the class is divided into teams and they have to search for answers to specific questions. The team who has the most points associated with the correct answer can inform the other team how to access the information on the PDA.


Disadvantages/limitations:

• You may need to have one standard device to avoid alot of work for the moderator to download software for all of the devices to be able to work on the same platform.


• Costly


• Need administrative and institutional support.


• Need a mandate to integrate PDA's throughout the curriculum and a financial commitment.

References:

Anderson, P., Blackwood, A. (2004). Mobile and PDA technologies and their future use in education. Retrieved on Oct 4, 2008 from http://www.jisc.ac.uk/uploaded_documents/ACF11B0.pdf


Cornelius, F., Gordon, M.G., Heinrich, K.T., Oermann, M. H.(2005). Annual review of nursing education: Introducing and using handheld technology in nursing education. Retrieved online Oct 5, 2008 from http://books.google.ca/books?id=QXrtdCI_3WEC&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_summary_r&cad=0#PPA179,M1


Fotosearch (2008). Stockphoto: A woman doing something with PDA in the grass. Retrieved on Oct 6, 2008 from http://www.fotosearch.com/TGR354/tnd014ta0034/


Why you need a PDA. (2008). Retrieved on Oct 4, 2008 from http://palmtops.about.com/cs/pdafacts/a/Why_You_need.htm

Emerging Technologies in Education -Wiki

Wiki is a collaborative website where users can edit and help to build a safe and secure page based on a common interest.

PBwiki is an easy to use wiki where; files (documents, videos etc.) can be easily shared amongst users; others can be added quickly to a project; notifications can be emailed to everyone to keep them up to date; the moderator can set access controls for pages and folders and monitor who made changes and reverse changes if needed. With PBwiki users can tag a conversation so that they can track answers to a posed question and search for a topic or issue that may have been discussed across pages just by the search of a word. Also, wiki automatically backs up your information.

Advantages for usage in the classroom:

• Keeps student engaged outside the classroom.


• Students are accountable for the changes they make.


• Calenders, newsletters, and assignmnts can be used to keep class up to date.


• Student's work can be linked to classmates work and as a group can collaborate on a project.


• Students can interact with other students internationally.


• Educators can post curriculum and receive feedback instantly regarding revisions.

I would incorporate wiki into the classroom by giving an introduction and demonstration to wiki at the beginning of a course and post due dates, course curriculum, RSS feeds (news & updates relating to the course), and place the class in groups surrounding certain topics.

Disadvantages:

• Security/Safety issues.


• Needs to be managed.


• Moderator has alot of labour.


• Combating ("Copy & paste").


• Keep wiki simple for editors.


• Simple wiki's do not track changes.


• Trust users to provide reliable content.


• Strong participation is expected.

If our education system can incorporate wiki into the classroom, where a thread of a discussion can be tagged and a topic being discussed can be found with the search of one word, then it will make it easier for the student and the instructor to follow the topic of interest.

References:

PBwiki. (2008). Simple, Secure, Collaborative: Create your own wiki in 60s. Retrieved on October 3, 2008 from http://pbwiki.com/

De Nys, J. (2008). Using wikis and blogs in education. Retrieved on Oct 4, 2008 from http://www.scribd.com/doc/2451263/Using-wikis-and-blogs-in-education