Building connections to enhance student engagement is essential and to be able to reach students using their mobile devices. Students have cell phones, tablets, iPads, laptops and they go everywhere with them. In a population that is working, commuting and/or raising a family, being engaged in school work takes great effort. Classroom activities must be accessible is a variety of formats to accommodate students at social events and anywhere from around the world! Faculty and students are increasingly reliant on mobile technology to build connections between students and their campuses. Because of inaccessibility and difficulty working within the learning management system from mobile devices, moving outside the learning management system is imperative for today’s mobile learner. Most of our students no longer use e-mail as a primary form of communication. A mobile platform gives a school the ability to reach students where they will most likely receive and read the message, work collaboratively with other classmates and improve student engagement in the courses. This presentation will provide examples of how to use this technology to support today’s mobile learner and promote student engagement. Being able to express one’s self in an online environment can be difficult, but by using various free web apps in courses, we can provide students with the platform they need to be expressive and interactive in their own way. This presentation will discuss many free and simple web 2.0 tools to help improve student engagement in any course format. We will discuss tools to promote collaboration in groups, visual learning tools, uses of podcasting, add voice to the classroom, and uses for many google apps that will improve student interaction. Research shows that the more students are engaged in their work, the better they perform. Student retention, satisfaction and graduation will improve using these mobile apps.
Building connections to enhance student engagement is essential and to be able to reach students using their mobile devices. Students have cell phones, tablets, iPads, laptops and they go everywhere with them. In a population that is working, commuting and/or raising a family, being engaged in school work takes great effort. Classroom activities must be accessible is a variety of formats to accommodate students at social events and anywhere from around the world! Faculty and students are increasingly reliant on mobile technology to build connections between students and their campuses. Because of inaccessibility and difficulty working within the learning management system from mobile devices, moving outside the learning management system is imperative for today’s mobile learner. Most of our students no longer use e-mail as a primary form of communication. A mobile platform gives a school the ability to reach students where they will most likely receive and read the message, work collaboratively with other classmates and improve student engagement in the courses. This presentation will provide examples of how to use this technology to support today’s mobile learner and promote student engagement. Being able to express one’s self in an online environment can be difficult, but by using various free web apps in courses, we can provide students with the platform they need to be expressive and interactive in their own way. This presentation will discuss many free and simple web 2.0 tools to help improve student engagement in any course format. We will discuss tools to promote collaboration in groups, visual learning tools, uses of podcasting, add voice to the classroom, and uses for many google apps that will improve student interaction. Research shows that the more students are engaged in their work, the better they perform. Student retention, satisfaction and graduation will improve using these mobile apps.