Effectiveness of a Mobile Plant Learning System in a science curriculum in Taiwanese elementary education

This study developed a Mobile Plant Learning System (MPLS) that provides instructors with the ways and means to facilitate student learning in an elementary-school-level botany course. The MPLS represented in this study was implemented to address problems that arise with the use of a didactic approa...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Computers and education Vol. 54; no. 1; pp. 47 - 58
Main Authors: Huang, Yueh-Min, Lin, Yen-Ting, Cheng, Shu-Chen
Format: Journal Article
Language:English
Published: Elsevier Ltd 2010
Elsevier
Subjects:
Academic Achievement
Applications in subject areas
Botany
Educational Technology
Elementary Education
Elementary Schools
Foreign Countries
Handheld Devices
Improving classroom teaching
Interviews
Learning Activities
Pretests Posttests
Program Effectiveness
Quasiexperimental Design
Questionnaires
Research Design
Science Curriculum
Taiwan
Teaching Methods
Teaching/learning strategies
Test Results
Taiwan
Teaching/learning strategies
Applications in subject areas
Elementary education
Improving classroom teaching
ISSN:0360-1315, 1873-782X
Online Access:Get full text
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Summary:This study developed a Mobile Plant Learning System (MPLS) that provides instructors with the ways and means to facilitate student learning in an elementary-school-level botany course. The MPLS represented in this study was implemented to address problems that arise with the use of a didactic approach to teaching and learning botany, as is typically used in elementary schools in Taiwan. To extend opportunities for learning beyond the classroom, this study used personal digital assistants (PDAs) equipped with the MPLS, which provided both teachers and students access to plant information while in the field. A quasi-experimental research design was used to investigate the effectiveness of using the MPLS to support student learning. The responses to questionnaires and interviews indicate that students valued the outdoor learning activities made possible by use of the PDA and its functions. Pre- and post-test results demonstrated that students also benefitted academically from the use of the MPLS and the PDA.
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ISSN:0360-1315
1873-782X
DOI:10.1016/j.compedu.2009.07.006