WHAT IS THE SUPPORT AND LEARNING OFFERED BY SMART PHONES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF STUDENTS ON INTERNATIONAL PLACEMENTS? Corinna Klaentschi – Project Lead.

WHAT IS THE SUPPORT AND LEARNING OFFERED BY SMART PHONES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF STUDENTS ON INTERNATIONAL PLACEMENTS?

Corinna Klaentschi – Project Lead

Siobhan Turley – student participant

Lauren Green – Student Participant

Rationale For Project

There is a need for undergraduate students to be prepared for both the globalisation and digitalisation of the workforce.

Increase in international placements• Students have a right to regular contact and to access information

for learning• University has less resources

Technology-enhanced learning is perceived to have many advantages for the learner, including anytime, anywhere access, self-paced learning, enquiry led learning and collaborative learning

Inspired by presentation at ALPS conference

Rationale for Smart Phone

Original idea was to use iPad• ALPS conference• Reliable and user friendly• Screen size and keyboard

Changed to Smart Phones No Network provider with Micro SIMs for iPad in Bangladesh and Uganda

Perceived Benefits/Compromises

Benefits Compromises

Cost Small screen

Phone/text Small keyboard

Less conspicuous Similar to student’s own devices

Rationale For Android Phone

HTC Desire S S510E (black) android 2.3 SIM Free/Unlocked

• Cost• User friendly• Choice of IT team therefore support available• No tie in to i-tunes model

Data Budget

Researched cost of use per month directly with placement staff within international locations

Researched cost of APPS

£10 per week

Expectation to use for learning and personal use, keeping an eye on budget

Student Engagement

Purposive sampling• 4 different countries: Bangladesh, Uganda, Seychelles

and Swaziland• 11 students; 7 occupational therapy, 2 Physiotherapy and

2 sportsStudents invited by email,Made explicit that participation was voluntary and would

have no impact on placement outcomeEthics approved by University ethics committee

Student Preparation

Pre placement workshop

• Clarify project aims• History of personal use of technology*• Orientation to devise• Orientation to recommended APPS eg, Dropbox, Soundnote,

Coursenotes, Lonely Planet, Pubmed, Medscape,

Mark Dransfield (e-learning advisor) on hand throughout

History Of Personal Use Of Mobile Phones

Never Daily Weekly Monthly Confidence1=low, 10=high

Texting 11 7-10

PIM 2 9 7-10

Built-in APPS 1 8 2 5-10

Social networking

3 7 1 8-10

Internet search

3 6 2 3-10

Photography 2 2 7 4-10

Games 4 2 2 3 5-10

Word Processing

8 1 2 5-10

Student ParticipationDaily completion of survey – qualitative data

How long have you spent using your phone for:• professional communication• professional reading and research• personal communication and social networking• entertainment• news and current affairs

Student ParticipationBrief weekly reflections – qualitative data

• How have you used the phone this week?• How has it supported your learning?• How has it supported your socialization?• Have you used the phone with others?• Have you accessed any new APPS?• Have there been any frustrations/barriers?

Siobhan and Lauren’s Expectations

Motivation for participating• Chance to be part of a research project• The ability to contact home whilst on placement

Feelings when iPads were replaced with smart phones• That a phone screen may not be suitable for reading articles or books from

and word processing may not be possible.

Use of personal laptops• We thought we would struggle to type up work documents and read long

documents from the phone screen due to its size,

BUT• Phones were easier to use when out and about• Phones were quicker to load up and we were able to do most of the things

Student Qualitative Reflections so far

Time (in minutes) spent using phone for professional communication• 1 - 4 = 21%• 5 - 10 = 48%• 30+ = 6%Time (in minutes) spent using phone for professional reading/research• 1 – 4 = 10%• 11 – 20 = 26%• 31+ = 29%Time (in minutes) spent using phone for personal communication• 1 – 4 = 11%• 21 – 30 = 25%• 30+ = 26%Time (in minutes) spent using phone for entertainment• 1 -4 = 36%• 5 – 10 = 37%• 30+ = 0

Student Reflections

Qualitative data so far:• Setting up the data package was time consuming• Used search engines to look up cultural information• Brilliant to be able to access library data• Used Travelpod for personal reflections which family also have

a link too• Used the wireless hotspot function in OT department so others

could access the internet through their computers• Regular power cuts make charging the phone difficult• Useful to receive emails directly to phone• Downloaded all my music and used the phone as a MP3 to

pass time in evenings!

Siobhan and Lauren’s Reflections How we used the phones• Alarm clock, calendar and calculator • Camera• GPS system • Store PDF files and Microsoft documents How the phones supported our learning • Contacting university using personal email addresses. • Through downloaded apps we used online databases to search for specific articles relating to specific

conditions seen within the service. How the phones supported our social life• specific apps to contact others. E.g. Whatsapp and Skype.• Skyping friends and family at home was very expensive so we purchased a separate dongle for internet use. How we used our phones with others• Everyone is Swaziland has a mobile phone.• iPad s may have been a bit too conspicuous. • We did use the phone with our educator to show him some research/evidence found. The frustrations we experienced • The phone has a very low battery life, so it had to be charged daily which was an issue.• The phone couldn’t connect to YSJ emails.• The phone network cut out which was very frustrating so we purchased a dongle.• Lauren’s phone was stolen!

Apps aid our learning

Documents to go: Very good to view Microsoft documents and PowerPoints when on the go.

About HIV: HIV app which provides detailed information about HIV and the impact it has on the human body. Good for quick referencing

Google translator: Unable to use as SiSwati was not a language Google was able to translate.

Apps• Google Maps

•Useful for planning weekend travel during our placement.

•Did not need to buy a travel guide.

•We were able to search for local attractions that had been suggested by other tourists through this app.

Social Apps

• WhatsApp : mobile messaging app which allows you to exchange messages without having to pay for SMS. WhatsApp Messenger is available for iPhone, BlackBerry, Android, Windows Phone and Nokia . WhatsApp Messenger uses the same internet data plan that you use for email and web browsing, there is no cost to message and stay in touch with your friends.

• Viber: Viber is an app for iPhone, Android, Windows Phone and Blackberry phones that lets you make free phone calls and send free text messages to anyone that also has the app.

The Future in the eyes of Siobhan and Lauren

Are phones the way forward?• Quick and easy way to source information. • As more people have personal smart phones, confidence in using phones for educational

purposes will grow. Would an iPad (or alternative) have been better?• The screen on the phone could have been bigger to make reading from the device easier. • I-pad or an alternative would also support word processing which would have been

beneficial. Would more students apply for international placements if they knew a phone would be

provided?• Yes, for many students knowing that they could contact home easily would increase the

number of students who apply Is it reasonable to expect students to bear the cost?• Students should pay for any credit needed for social networking • University should ideally pay for credit related to educational purposes Would this project transfer to ANY placement?• Yes - there are thousands of apps that can be accessed • Access to the internet where ever you are is a big benefit when studying at home or abroad.

FutureValuable learning experience• Having had the opportunity to go on an international placement has been a life changing

opportunity that has been an extremely valuable learning experience. Being introduced to a completely different way of working has opened our eyes and broadened our horizons more than going on a placement based in the UK.

Improved employability• We feel that having experienced different cultures and religions as well as using technology to

aid our learning should improve our employability especially since we are living in a country where technology is changing all the time.

Increased confidence in using technology • Continue to use my phone to research information on the internet, and not just for social

purposes. • Continue to use apps to contact people that I met when I was away.• Apps for specific health conditions will be very helpful in the future depending on the area of

work we go into.

The positive impact of being part of a small research project • Provided us with an opportunity to use a smart phone for both social and educational purposes.• Being invited to present at this conference has given us valuable experience

Early RecommendationsAnalyse qualitative and quantitative data when all 11

students are backScope general student population and type of phone they

haveDiscuss options to provide budget for use of own phone

or expectation that students incorporate cost within overall budget

Encourage use of phones and many free APPS – not just on international placements

Encourage use of mobile phones in ALL placements.

Thank you