““The Learning from Starlight” The Learning from Starlight” project: experencing mobile project: experencing mobile

technologies to improve education technologies to improve education and outreach of Astrophysicsand outreach of Astrophysics

Serena Pastore

INAF (National Institute of Astrophysics) – Padova – ITALY

pastore@pd.astro.it

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Could wireless tecnologies and mobile devices improve learning and teaching of Astrophysics as a science based on

observations?

The Project and its goals

1. HP granted to INAF a package of mobile equipment suitable for building an e-class

2. INAF (the Astronomical Observatory of Padova) has experienced mobile tecnology involving three classrooms of three different stages in Italian

education

A more strict integration between research and educational environments

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Students and teachers package

WLAN and e-class package

Hardware equipment

-iPAQ Pocket PC (Wi-Fi/Bluetooth) with 256 MB memory (26);

- HP Tablet Docking Station with DVD/CDRW (14+2);

-HP Tablet PC (Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Ethernet) – 26+2;

-HP Access Point (4);

-HP Officejet 6100 (2);

-HP Digital projectors (2);

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“Scuola Elementare Tempesta Bologna”Primary school; 8-years-old pupils

Didactic design by: Angela Turricchia of “Planetario – Settore Istruzione Comune di Bologna” and Maria Antonietta Carrozza of “ Liceo Scientifico Fracastoro Verona”

Involved School and primary goal

“Scuola Media Pepoli”Bologna secondary school; 13-years-old pupils

“Liceo Scientifico Fracastoro – Verona – high school; 18-years-old students

Students of each class should attend an astronomy course about the observation and analysis of astrophysical phenomena divided into two phases (in classroom and research institute context)

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Mobile learning (m-learning) as tecnology supported learning: any educational provision where the dominant tecnologies are heldheld devices (including mobile phones, PDAs, tablets and and wireless devices)”

The Mobile learning paradigm

Deployment of a wireless network infrastructure for the delivery of programmed activities

m-learninge-learning

tablets

laptopPDA

smartphone

PC

Mobile devices and wireless connectivity enables teachers and students in learning-related activities in several physical locations enhancing the sharing of multimedia content

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- Digitized contents in several formats (text, animation, slides, web pages, presentation, on-line quizzes and so on) to be provided both in classroom context and outside (for example at home);

- each student had to partecipate in individual and group based activities sharing her/his work with others;

- teacher could assist and should monitor them;

- all actors should be able to read and write contents of all the types

General requirements and constraints

On the other hand:- Locations without avaibility of internet connection;- Preferably use of open source software (for example OpenOffice.org instead of the well-known Microsoft Office);

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Classroom context: use of palms and

tablets in an intranet network to follow the astronomical course INAF-Padova context: a full day with

astronomers. Use of palms and tablets wireless connected to the institute network and to Internet to follow a

specific module of the course

Final module until the end of the

school

7th January – 18th April 2005

31th March 200528th April 200529th April 2005

29th April – 10th June 05

Project phases

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Use of an ad-hoc wireless network of tablets and iPAQs to realize an information system implementing an hybrid Peer-to-Peer architecture

Course module: how to discover the difference between a luminous and not-luminous celestial body with the observation of its physical parameters

Classroom context (intranet)

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- wireless ad-hoc network using Wi-Fi connection (using Windows XP operating system network functionalities);

- Client-server architecture between teacher’s tablet (equipped with web server) and students’ devices

-Peer-to-peer system between students palms and tablets in order to exchange multimedia content

The intranet wireless LAN for each classroom

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INAF-Padova context (internet)

W-LAN integrated with INAF wired infrastructure to allow internet connection and a more wide wireless range

Course module: Mars – how to know and classify this celestial body of our solar system

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- W-LAN integrated into the institute wireless LAN (same SSID)

-Use of all access point to extende wireless range in all the rooms;

- use of institute web services (web and ftp server, etc)

- Wireless LAN connected to wired infrastructure and by the network of italian research and university institution (GARR) to internet

Extended W-LAN with internet connection

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Several activities concerning the knowledge of Mars

A typical day experience at INAF-Padova

Morning activities

intensive use of iPAQs to take notes, make calculation and explore content on the web

Afternoonactivities

use of iPAQs and tablets to work in group: pupils had to make a presentation to the whole audience about a list of subjects

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Calculate Mars

distance

Morning activities

Interviews with

astronomers

Knowledge of Mars in the past

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Write about an argument

Afternoon activities

Presentations of the work to others

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Efficacy of wireless network environment

Issues

Content delivered

Initial problem with the little knowledge of computers especially in the first phase of the project, then

students were happy to use these tools for learning

- Some problems only in the classroom context

- Limited software and technical problems in exchancing files between iPAQs and tablets

Handheld devices

- Specific content developed for palm devices

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- Students was excited to use these computers for doing their lessons and they also continued the learning process outside (at home for example)

- Course material used with palms and tablets indifferently;

-Wireless network in INAF-Padova successfully used for all activities (limitation only due to network band);

Initial results

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- Specific user interface should be developed in order to exploit iPAQs in learning/teaching activities

Further development

This experience encourages the use of wireless tecnology and mobile devices to improve education and outreach.

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Website of the entire project (on development)

http://www.pd.astro.it/hp

Thanks!

{pastore, boccato, nobili, lazzaretto,benacchio}@pd.astro.it