The MoLeNet project dissemination event at the Emirates Stadium 18/09/2008
Mobile Learning in Further Education

The Emirates Stadium in North West London was the stage for the largest celebration of Mobile Learning in Further Education in this country and probably the world.

Over 300 delegates were treated to a “mobifest” of experiences and lessons learned from the LSC funded £7m MoLeNet project.

http://www.molenet.org.uk/

Managed by the Learning and Skills Network over 100 schools and college consortia shared their experiences of how mobile learning had contributed to higher levels of achievement, increased learner motivation, more personalised learning, increased accessibility and better support and progression for almost 10,000 students.

Workshops, seminars and an “expert panel” session complemented the inputs from the LSN project managers.

Jill Attewell, the Molenet project manager was delighted with the outcomes of the project and the turn out for the dissemination conference.

“ This project has tapped in to an increasing desire for mobile learning within the sector organisations and especially the learners themselves” said Jill.

The Learning and Skills Council, who funded the project, are also pleased and have decided to fund a second year of the project and bids are invited from Colleges for over £4m of funding. However the funding model of MoLeNet has been somewhat different to previous capital projects. Colleges had to fund 20% of total project costs themselves.

“We have been really pleased with the innovative approach of colleges to improve the quality of education but also to the partnership funding model used by MoLenet” said Steve Nichols, Technology for Learning Manager at the LSC.

Learners really enjoyed the experience, one learner said;

“you have got to bear in mind we have been brought up with technology but our teachers are quite old! However we have taught them and they seem to be picking it up”

It was the unexpected outcomes which pleased Sharon Stone, the e learning and technology support tutor from Oaklands College:

We had two students with disabilities who created their own mobile blogs and uploaded content from a range of settings and contexts…. and this project has really challenged the thinking of our tutors” said Sharon

An expert panel of Mike Short 02,Geoff Stead, Tribal, Elizabeth Hartnell-Young, LSRI ,Nottingham University Dave Whyley, Wolverhampton and Bob Harrison, Toshiba Information Systems responded to questions texted from the audience on their mobile phones.

The MoLeNet project has been a remarkable success given the timescale and constraints and has made a major contribution to the development of mobile learning in further education.

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