Understanding Mobile Learning at Athabasca University through MobiGlam (UMLAUT-M): Do the Benefits Justify the Cost and Time? at the 2008 International Conferfence on Mobile Learning

Abstract

1. The goal of the UMLAUT-M project is to investigate the viability and pedagogic usefulness of mobile access to online course materials. Although the project team is composed of researchers and programmers from the United Kingdom and Canada, the project itself is being conducted at a distance University in Canada. Students of this university receive textbooks, manuals, and other materials through the mail. Currently, there is some provision for person to person interaction through telephones, the learning management system (Moodle), and various other electronic tools. Yet, there remains an apparent lack of "connectedness" among learners because of the physical and temporal separation of the instructors and the learners. The project tested a system called MobiGlam which allows students to access Moodle courses through a variety of mobile devices such as cellular telephones, PDAs, and smartphones.