Apps and Gaps

How we can bridge it for Educators?

Guess the disAbility?

Guess the disAbility?

Guess the disAbility?

Guess the disAbility?

Who am I?

James Northridge

– Bsc - Business Information Systems - UCC– Msc - Rehabilitation & Disability studies - UCD

Dyslexia

2014

2004…

2004…

Hard Facts

•At 19 years I had the following scores:

•Reading age: 9 Years 3 months

•Spelling age: 8 years and 2 months

….. Where to from here..

My Experience

UrAbility

• Supply Assistive Technology products

• Summer Camps & Saturday AT Sessions for Students, Parents & Teachers

• Teacher Summer Courses

• Technology Reviews & Training

UrAbility

The UrAbility Team

Where are we with Tablets?

How should we use Apps in Education?

Reasonable Accommodation

• A reasonable accommodation is any arrangement, change or modification that seeks to reduce the impact of an impairment, disability or specific learning difficulty without creating an advantage over other students in assessment, or creating undue risk for anyone during practical work.

Assistive Technology

• Assistive Technology is “Any product or service that maintains or improves the ability of someone with a disability to communicate, learn and live independently”

Assistive Technology

Stress/Worry Independence/Confidence

1910 Vs 2000

The Stats

• 1.4 million using tablets (15% increase year on year)

• 16-24 year olds have access to an average of six potential online devices

• Average of 21 apps per device, however only use 7 regularly

• 75% of apps are for Social Media

The Stats

• Over 50 Billion downloads from the App Store

• 127 minutes - Avg time spend on Apps

• Tablet sales are even with PC sales

• >50 million iphones & ipads in use

Vs.

What are Apps?

• An App is application used on a mobile device, Android phone or tablet, iPhone or iPad

• Web apps run in a browser i.e. Gmail or Google docs

• You need an account to download in both

Different between S/W & Apps

• Cheap or free

• Instant - You can search, download, install and run an App in less than 2 minutes!

• Limited features

The Kids..

Who are they? Net Gen

• ICT is dominating today’s student life, however, today’s student doesn’t think of it as technology

• One generation’s technology is taken for granted by the next generation

• ICT is simply the way things are done

• Net Generation - Never known life without the Internet

73% can’t study without using technology…

Cisco Research

Maslow - Revisited

Screenification of Education

Capturing the learner’s attention

Capturing the learner’s attention

Creating Innovative Learning

TTWWADI

That’s the way we always did it

How to connect?

• Digital Natives enter education– Multi-tasking students– Educational sector wasn’t designed for

today’s student

• How to engage with/educate “net gen” students?

How to Connect?

• Tools/Content/Delivery Strategy– In-class Q&A via text (Finland)– Online, blended, mobile????

• Pressure on teachers to stay on top of technological developments

• Primary focus on content and pedagogy

How to Connect?

What do students expect from HE institutions?

University of Sussex (2015)

1. Wifi

2. VLE

3. Academics who are digitally-savvy..!

Academic Engagement

Academic engagement utilising innovative

media in the context of the Technological,

Pedagogical and Content Knowledge (TPACK) Framework•Matt Glowatz & Orna O’Brien, UCD (2014)

Academic Engagement

• How do “learner’s” learn?– Mobile and Peer Learning

• How do “learner’s” become good at something?– Classes, Trial and Error, Learning by Doing,

Critical Thinking?

• In a Classroom, students– Don’t pay 100% attention..

TPACK Framework

• Technological, Pedagogical and Content Knowledge Framework (TPACK)

• Allowing teachers/instructors/lecturers to conceptualise the knowledge base required to teach effectively and efficiently with technology

TPACK Framework

Findings from UCD study

• Students expect academics to understand their(student) prior knowledge and current familiarity with technology

• Students appreciate academics to incorporate that knowledge (TK) into the curriculum design

• Students experience frustration where academics were not in tune with their (student) familiarity with technology

Findings from UCD study

• The majority of students (65%) perceived that a lack of technological knowledge has a negative impact on the student’s own learning.

• “Lecturers may not be able to understand our most effective learning habits. Also, it is slightly annoying when the lecturer is fumbling with the technology in class”

Test.. How should we use Tablets in School?

Note Taking Apps

Notability

Livescribe +

Livescribe Smartpen

Flashcard Apps

Evernote Peek

Chegg Flashcards

Other Apps

Prizmo

Claro PDF

Literacy Apps

ClaroRead Plus

iReadWrite

Notability

Reading & Writing Editing Cycle

"Inclusive Education with Tablets - IncluEdu"

• Three year European project

• Innovative, European-wide, modularised further education programme for educators

• Tablet courses:– In person in each partner location

• E-Learning• Online Community• Sharing resources

• International partners: Austria, United Kingdom, Finland & Germany

Now, How should we use Apps in Education?

The Challenge

Talk to us….

www.facebook.com/UrAbility

@urability

Website: www.UrAbility.com

Email: james@UrAbility.com