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Many students have smartphones - and they bring them to
class. The challenge, then, is to think about how you, as an instructor,
might leverage these phones to improve learning and communication in your
course. (Alternately, you can ask / require that all cellphones be kept
inside a bag or backpack for the duration of the class, if that is more
fitting with the objectives of the course or a specific lesson.)
If you're interested in thinking specifically about how to
use smartphones in your course, I've listed a few common options below. As
always, bear in mind that some students may not have smartphones or may not
have plans that allow for additional data usage.
1. Mobile-friendly content so your students can review
course concepts no matter where they are. According to an industry study,
students with smartphones may study slightly more than those without said
phones (although the benefit of said extra study time in unclear). At any
rate, making your materials available in a format that is mobile-friendly
will certainly help those students who do wish to study on breaks at work,
in the gym, or while waiting in line for coffee. On the topic of mobile
access, did you know that TCU has a Pearson LearningStudio
mobile site? This is basically a mobile-friendly version of
LearningStudio content (not an app - no special downloads are required).
Now your students can review your LearningStudio site no matter where they
are!
2.Texting students reminders or updates. Is the class
meeting in the library today? Do students need to wear closed-toe shoes? Is
a bluebook required for the exam? These sorts of quick reminders can save
you and your students a lot of trouble. Text messages tend to be received
and read fairly quickly, thereby having the the potential to avert
crises-in-the-making.
The actual mechanics of an instructor-student text tree can
be a little daunting, however. For those wanting to keep telephone numbers
private (both on the instructor side and on the student side), ClassParrot
is a program that allows instructors and students to send
text message without having to share the actual telephone numbers. In
addition to a polling feature, ClassParrot also logs all communications,
providing a handy back-up in case there are any issues that would require
one to revisit the text conversations. ClassParrot has a limited free
option; it costs $9 per month for the ability to send/receive an unlimited
number of messages. Here is a pretty balanced review of ClassParrot.
3. Helping students become better writers. This is an
intriguing piece about one professor's evolving thoughts about the place of
cell phones in his class. As a professor in a writing-intensive class, he
has moved from an outright ban of all cellphones to embracing the voice recording feature
(present on most smartphones) to help students improve their written work.
While this hasn't worked for all students, many students have responded
positively and benefited from this strategy.
4. Improving communication with Google Voice. This is
more something you, as the instructor, would do - and if you have a
smartphone, this gets even easier and more convenient! The Pearson
LearningStudio blog has a very informative post about using Google Voice to improve your presence and
immediacy as an instructor. From the same people who bring
you all the other Google tools, Google Voice offers free calls and text
messages to the U.S. and Canada, a single number that rings you anywhere
(you can set / schedule the number to which the calls will forward), an
online voicemail inbox, and transcribed messages. The message transcription
is a wonderful (albeit sometimes imperfect) feature, as it creates a
written record of any messages, should you need to review any
communications at a later date. Pairing the transcribed messages with the
ability to view them on your smartphone (either via an app or by electing
to have text messages sent to your phone) means that you can be made aware
of student communications even if you are far from your office phone or in
a setting where a phone call is simply not appropriate.
Note that you need not have a smartphone to use Google
Voice - you can capture many of the benefits of Google Voice just
using your computer. However, having a smartphone means that your ability
to receive messages on the go is greatly increased.
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