MILCA – A mobile and interactive learning environment on campus

Abstract

This paper aims at introducing a new platform for mobile and interactive learning targeted as an effective communication medium between the professor and students during lectures. In this system, students and professors will be equipped with a Multimedia Messaging Service (MMS) capable device (which may be PDAs, Laptops, or Tablet PCs) that is connected on the campuswide 802.11b Wireless LAN. During lectures, students can ask questions, response to questions or give immediate feedback on the lecture simply by composing an MMS message and sending it to the professor. The professor himself can choose to immediately respond to the comments or to delay his response so as not to disrupt the flow of the lecture. Interactive quizzes can also be carried out during lecture simply by having the professor sending out the question to students in MMS format, receiving their responses, and reviewing the results on the spot. The main advantage of this learning system is that MMS messaging is easily extensible to the mobile GSM networks, so students are not restricted to use it only on campus. This system is particularly beneficial in engineering education, since engineering students are generally tech-savvy, and therefore can easily adapt to this medium. This learning system will also encourage students to be more participative in the learning process, as students tend to be shy to speak up in front of large groups.