Mobile Learning Institute,

Mobile Learning Institute

Still in San Francisco, Frances investigates an initiative that flies firmly in the face of traditional education. Mobile phones, banned in most schools, are here used as a key learning device in the classroom. Joining a summer camp, where kids learn to use mobile phones to make a film about the environment, her experience turns out to be rather different from her memories of her own days at school...

I must admit that my days at school weren’t always quite as glorious as they might have been. At my first school, I won the peculiar accolade of being first-girl-in-school-history-to-be-beaten, following repeated ‘tiresome behaviour’ as my end of term report put it. So I wasn’t much relishing the prospect of returning to the classroom.

But hold on a minute; things seem a bit different here, I think to myself as I step nervously into the classroom at Fort Mason: no uniforms, no bells sounding the beginning and end of lessons, and above all no sinister signs of corporal punishment. Instead, cool, friendly teachers, chocolate cake at break time and above all, mobile phones encouraged in the classroom!

In all the schools that I know, mobiles phones are strictly banned from the classroom. Not here at the Mobile Learning Institute: they’re seen as an essential tool to both teaching and learning. It’s the 21st century here, not nineteenth as my first school seemed to me.

Soon we’re learning about Twitter too. While I’m being signed, the process is demonstrated in front of the kids by projecting it onto the classroom’s screen. To my horror, a London friend lurking in the murky cyber world of Twitter spots me and starts to tweet. Fortunately, and before he can write anything too rude before a classroom full of kids, he’s blocked in the nick of time. Phew. The corporal punishment might just have made a renaissance.

Next, we’re off to Point Bonita, a national park around 10km from San Francisco. For many of the kids, it will be their first visit to any national park. Almost as excited as the kids, I ask Jonathan, Moses and Diangelo if I can join their gang, and we get on the bus, swap lunch boxes and share sweeties together.

‘Oh my Gad. This is my first trip ever ever ever over the Golden Gate!’, Jonathan exclaims excitedly.

At Point Bonita, we spend two days exploring the park’s wild and diverse terrain in the company of the rangers and the teachers. As we learn about the flora and fauna and watch the wildlife that includes seals, deer and beautiful birds, I spot snap-happy kids everywhere, all madly gathering material for their films.

Back at Fort Mason, there’s a premiere of the films on the last day. I’m stunned by the standard of film-making and the results. In the course of just four days, the kids have learnt how to use a sophisticated piece of technology, to navigate two social networking sites, how to plan, shoot, produce and edit a film, as well as a whole heap about the environment at a beautiful local attraction. Most miraculous of all is that they’ve enjoyed it. Miracle of all miracles, so have I.

With many thanks to the Pearson Foundation for their help in the production of this video.

Download student videos:

 Sequoia Stompers: .wmv .mp4

 Redwood Giants: .wmv .mp4

 Douglas Firballs: .wmv .mp4

 Diablo Devils: .wmv .mp4

 Death Valley Dunes: .wmv .mp4

 Acorn Throwers: .wmv .mp4

 Point Reyes: .wmv .mp4

 Tamapais Trapers: .wmv .mp4

 Tomales Bay Shuckers: .wmv .mp4

 Yosemite Yoyos: .wmv .mp4

  Become a friend

 Download project video: .wmv .mp4

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