Handheld Learning - learning with mobile and ubiquitous technologies

Nokia is apparently launching a pilot in South Africa, using pretty bog-standard mobiles (Nokia 6300) to teach Maths to grade 10 girls. They're partnering with a not-for-profit organisation called Mindset Network and the South African Government’s Department of Education.

“This project demonstrates the potential of mobile phones to enable social development and improve education especially in underprivileged areas, ” says Micheline Ntiru, Head of Nokia’s Community Involvement Programs in the Middle East and Africa. “Young people are increasingly using their phones to gain knowledge via the internet, social networking and interaction with their peers, so it makes sense to introduce learning through these devices. By combining Nokia handsets with innovative content, and the enthusiasm of the teachers and pupils this scheme creates an opportunity to really help create new skills and opportunities.”

I'd love to see some of that 'innovative' content on the handsets, considering that the 6300 is a hugely popular mid-range S40 handset (which supports Java and FlashLite 2.0, incidentally). Let's hope they make the pilot research findings available.

Wolf.