Dear Guest, welcome to the literature database of the London Mobile Learning Group (LMLG). Please feel free to browse or search through the references that we consider to have a wider relevance to mobile learning. In particular you will find all literature that was cited in the book 'Mobile Learning: Structures, Agency, Practices' (Springer, 2010).
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Their Space: Education for a Digital Generation
Type of publication: Book
Citation: 218
Booktitle: Their Space: Education for a Digital Generation
Year: 2007
Publisher: Demos
Address: London
Note: Green, Hannon 2007 - Their Space js, 27.05.2007
ISBN: 1 84180 175 5
URL: http://www.demos.co.uk/files/T...
Abstract: School's out from politicians to see the world from a very different perspective to the generation of young people who do not remember life without the instant answers of the internet or the immediate communication of mobile phones. It is these decision-makers who shape the way that digital technologies are used in the system and who set them up to limit their use and role in everyday life. This is a short-term solution to a long-term change. In an economy driven by knowledge rather than manufacturing, employers are already valuing very different skills, such as creativity, communication, presentation skills and team-building. Schools are at the front line of this change and need to think about how they can prepare young people for the future parents, young people and society in general have a blind spot in terms of recognising and valuing these 'softer' skills. Myths and misconceptions When they first emerge almost all new technologies have provoked panic over their potential impact. Debates driven by moral panic on the one side and technological determinism on the other are in stark contrast to the way young people view and use technologies. The young people we spoke to did not find questions around their consumption of digital technologies interesting. Using them was completely ingrained in their lives, and they did so simply to make their lives easier. They were preoccupied with maintaining existing networks, searching for homework on Google and playing games. Chapter 2 examines several myths to identify elements of truth alongside the distortions. We draw on our conversations with individual children, diaries, focus groups in formal and informal educational settings and our polling of 600 parents. This chapter builds up a clearer picture of the use, role and impact of digital technologies on young peoples' lives. Learning from digital pioneers Most young people use technology to facilitate the kind of social interactions that we all recognise. However, there is a smaller group of digital pioneers that is pushing at the boundaries of conventional practice. For every focus group we ran there was a 'leader of the pack' who was one step ahead of the other children. These individuals have strong digital identities and are making the shift from consumption to creation. A range of characteristics is common to this type of self-motivation, ownership, purposeful creativity and peerto- peer learning. Chapter 3 examines these characteristics in more detail and explores examples of schools that are building on this type of learning. These schools and headteachers are transferring elements into the classroom without assessing or institutionalising informal learning. Start with people not PCs In order to see change across the system, there needs to be a shift in thinking about investment from hardware towards relationships and networks. In the last ten years we have seen a staggering change in the amount of hardware in schools, but it has not had a significant impact on teaching and learning styles. So what does this mean for schools? It means that they need to really listen and respond to their with the interests and enthusiasms of their students. They also need to recognise the one of access to knowledge rather than hardware - and start to redress some of the existing imbalances. Finally they need to develop strategies to bridge formal and informal learning, home and school. They should find ways that go with the grain of what young people are doing, in order to foster new skills and build on what we know works. The world has changed so why haven't we? The current generation of young people will reinvent the workplace, and the society they live in. They will do it along the progressive lines of networks, collaboration, co-production and participation. The change in behaviour has already happened.We have to get used to it, accept that the flow of knowledge moves both ways and do our best to make sure that no one is left behind. Chapter 4 talks about a necessary shift in values to make this happen. Chapter 5 goes on to outline the practical changes that need to happen at every level in the system from policymakers to practitioners in order to see real transformation.
Userfields: numberISSNISBNnumberBN={file:///green_Their%20space%20-%20web.pdf},
Authors Green, Hannah
Hannon, Celia
Added by: [ADM]
Total mark: 0
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  • http://www.demos.co.uk/files/T...
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