Windows Mobile in the Classroom

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Windows Mobile in the Classroom
by Kevin Ebi
   
   

Back when I was in schoolâ€"back when we had to walk to class in the snowâ€"uphill both waysâ€""showing our work" simply meant leaving a few little hash marks on our math homework to show we remembered to carry the one.

With Windows Mobile powered devices, today’s students can instantly research any topic online, or if they use electronic textbooks, they can keep track of assignments and create animations to show that they truly understand the material.

And students are learning moreâ€"and having more funâ€"in the process.

"It really has made the classroom come alive," says Monique Shorr, a sixth-grade social studies and science teacher at Hartland Farms Intermediate School in Hartland, Michigan.

Shorr is so convinced of the power of the mobile technology that she also teaches other teachers how to use it. She works as an integrated handheld specialist for GoKnow, which makes an animation program called Sketchy. Students in her class use Sketchy to create animations to show their understanding of any number of topics, ranging from the importance of castles in the Middle Ages to what happens in the various layers of the atmosphere. Their animations demonstrate applied knowledge, learning they can share with their classmates by using their work in in-class presentations.

Because of her unique role with GoKnow, her students get their own Pocket PCs to use for the entire school year. (They don’t break as many as you think. They seem to understand how special the opportunity truly is, and most classes make it the whole year without any accidents.)

The technology "allowed me to become a facilitator to learning, as opposed to just standing up front and lecturing," Shorr says. "It has allowed students to take learning into their own hands."

And I know you’ve heard this before, but Shorr swears it’s true: kids in her class enjoy learning.

"When we write a research paper, they’re excited about it as opposed to moaning and groaning," she says. "They’re very focused. They’re very tuned in. It’s hard to get them to stop."
   
      
   
Related Links
   
   

    * Sketchy
    * Lexisgoo
    * WordBook
    * Oxford Dictionary
    * Britannica Concise Encyclopedia
    * 2005 World Almanac
    * Pocket Flash Cards
    * RealCalculator
    * Calculator Suite
    * The Dog Ate It
    * ProStudent
    * Girders
    * K-metronome
    * Shop for Devices

   
   
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    * Say Ah! to Windows Mobile
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Ready access to mobile devices makes for unusual tests. Sometimes she picks a topic and gives them just a couple of minutes to create a Sketchy animation. Students are graded based on how many key elements of the history lesson or scientific process they remembered to include.

In addition to Sketchy, there are a number of useful educational programs: Lexisgoo, WordBook and the Oxford Dictionary are among the electronic reference materials. Each of these electronic dictionaries contains at least 150,000 words, definitions, and synonyms, equivalent to more than a thousand printed pages.

There’s even an electronic encyclopedia. Britannica Concise Encyclopedia contains brief overviews of more than 25,000 subjects. For information on geography, countries, and natural resources, the 2005 World Almanac is also available for the Pocket PC and is packed with statistics, graphs, and tables.

Pocket Flash Cards is a high-tech version of the old technique for memorizing facts. You can create flash cards on a personal computer, copy them to your Pocket PC, and quiz yourself whenever you have time. The program even shuffles the cards for you.

With Pocket PCs, students no longer need to carry around separate scientific calculators. RealCalculator and Calculator Suite add scientific and statistical functions.

Another challenge for students is keeping track of homework assignments and class projects. A couple of programs can help students get organized:

The Dog Ate It works with Microsoft Outlook to keep track of class schedules. It can generate a complete list of all assignments and their due days and issue reminders. It also keeps track of the various grading scales used by different instructors.

ProStudent not only keeps track of when your assignments are due, it also tells you how well you’re doing in class. The program tracks progress on your assignments and keeps track of the grades you have received. A single tap generates your likely grade in each of your classes.

Other programs make use of the multimedia capabilities of Windows Mobile to make learning fun.

Girders is a game that teaches engineering skills. Students design bridges that span massive gaps and that have to withstand simulated wind and earthquakes.

Windows Mobile powered devices can even help out in band class. K-metronome can keep the beat and replace a traditional metronome, as well as teach students many popular rhythms. It also keeps students in tune with its pitch feature.

And it turns out the technology isn’t just for students. It’s helping to keep teachers motivated. As the technology and software tools change every year, so does Shorr’s approach in the classroom. She has to work constantly to refine her lesson plans to best take advantage of all the tools.

It’s a challenging assignment in and of itself, but it’s also exciting. Every new school year is a fresh start, rather than a re-run of last year and the year before and the year before that.

"If I had to go back to traditional teaching," Shorr says, "I think I would go find another job."
   
   
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