Mobile Learning: Pilot Projects And Initiatives by Dr. Retta Guy

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book tackles the subject of mobile learning from a variety of angles. The basic structure is to use different authors for each chapter, each focusing on their area of expertise. Unlike some others on this topic that I have read, it makes a good effort to at least tackle the definition of “Mobile Learning” or “mLearning” if you like. This is one of those terms/ideas that is thrown around a lot, but often with little if any qualification about what it really means.

The text avoids a lot of discussion about specific hardware platforms, which is probably a good idea given how rapidly things are changing in this field right now. Any published book that delves into hardware runs the risk of being out of date shortly after coming out in print.

The topic is covered both with specific ideas about implementation and literature reviews of existing research on the applicability and usefulness of mobile learning projects. Basic learning theory including adult learning is covered. This book could be used as a reference for a class focusing on mobile learning.



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The Mobile Academy: mLearning for Higher Education by Clark N. Quinn

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This book, with a publication date of 2012, is I suppose an updated version of the author’s other book “Designing mLearning” which I reviewed separately. Suffice it to say, this one is just as much of a jumbled mess and it really isn’t a solid reference for this topic. It barely passes as something to read for a quick review.



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Designing mLearning: Tapping Into the Mobile Revolution for Organizational Performance by Clark N. Quinn

My rating: 1 of 5 stars

This really isn’t a useful reference if you are try to learn more about designing mobile learning. It is a basic overview at best. It does not contain any specifically useful information about developing for mobile learning. The information about learning and teaching theory is OK but very basic and it isn’t really applied usefully for mobile learning. Despite a publication date of 2011, it is horribly outdated – it shows a Palm Pilot ( I bet a lot of today’s learners don’t even know what that is!) and the “typical cell phone” is a pre-smartphone Samsung model with a black and white display.

The whole book is a lot of words and concepts and drawings, but there just isn’t much meat on the bone.

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The World Is Open: How Web Technology Is Revolutionizing Education by Curtis J. Bonk

My rating: 2 of 5 stars

Overall I don’t really care for this book. Not that I disagree with the basic premise of the book which is that the developing WWW is offering all sorts of new ways for learners all over the world to access learning of virtually any content, anywhere, any time. There is no doubt that this is true and I believe in and use many of the specific tools that are discussed. For me personally, I don’t care much for the breathless story-telling model of discussing how new technologies are impacting us. The stories get old quickly, and there is not really any usable and structured information that can be leveraged to actually exploit all of this new technology in a meaningful way for my own pursuit of unifying and simplifying the learning process.

The book also over-emphasizes the impact of having open information available on the internet. We have had open information for virtually anyone for years via books in the library. That doesn’t mean that everyone can become an expert on every topic by reading the books in the library. The MIT project with all of the coursework available to anyone in the world who wants to look at it doesn’t generate a world full of people with the knowledge of MIT graduates. Unfortunately, learning just doesn’t work that way. If only it were so easy! What we really need to focus on is the development of the technology such that it can supplement or if possibly replace traditional methods of teaching and learning, which have been developed and improved for many many years. Everyone is excited about using technology in this way, but much of the technology that is discussed in this book has actually been available for a number of years now and the impact doesn’t seem to be all that great. Once again we are confronted with the idea that incorporating technology/multimedia into learning may not directly cause an impact in the effectiveness of that learning, a concept that has been researched and published upon extensively.

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Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association by American Psychological Association

My rating: 3 of 5 stars

This book certainly must rank as one of the most “ironic” publications in recent history. The whole point of this book is to provide clear instructions on how to format a scholarly paper that is produced for a college-level class. Good intentions were in place to update and reorganize the material in the previous edition, but apparently they forgot rule number one: be sure to proofread and double-check your work! The result is an infamously error-ridden guide on how not to commit errors. Nonetheless it functions well enough to act as a lookup-reference for details on formatting a paper, citing references, and constructing the reference list properly. If you have acquired the “sixth edition,first printing” then you should visit th APA website and download the corrections. If you have the second printing or later then the corrections should be already applied.

There is also much supplemental information that was not put into the book for whatever reason, visit www.apa.org to access this information and well as to see the latest updates.

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Trends and Issues in Instructional Design and Technology by Robert Reiser

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

With the 3rd edition for 2012 this text continues the tradition of providing a cross-section view of the various aspects of instructional design and technology (IDT). The very first concept in the introduction discusses the question “what exactly is IDT?”, a question those in the field are continually asked. The approach to answer this question is to discuss various aspects of IDT using different authors who are experts in their own specialized areas within IDT. The opening sections on the definition and the history of IDT are of of particular value to both people in the field and laypersons. The remaining sections cover various aspects of IDT in detail, including how it fits in and impacts areas such as business, health care, education and the military. The third edition includes new information about important topics such as international multiculturalism, diversity and accessibility, and ethics. There is also a new discussion about the ever-increasing role of the design aspect of IDT. This remains an up-to-date and worthwhile reference to keep and continue to refer to even after you may have “had to read it” for an IDT course.

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Multimedia for Learning: Methods and Development by Stephen M. Alessi

My rating: 5 of 5 stars

This is an excellent overview of the topic and can be the primary go-to reference for developing instructional design projects. At the time of this writing (2011) this text has been criticized for being outdated. The 3rd edition was written in 2001 just as the Internet was starting to explode. The authors added chapters to discuss the Internet and it is true that this information is out of date, something that is impossible to avoid given ten years within the rapidly-evolving environment of the world wide web. Also missing are any discussions of mobile technology including tablets which are based on touchscreen interaction. Nonetheless the majority of the material in the book still holds strong, because the fundamental principles, planning and tactics required to produce an excellent learning project remain the same and are independent of the technical delivery platform that is used. Even though at first glance the chapters discussing the specifics of laying out an interactive screen seem overly simplistic, if you refer back to those repeatedly as you actually develop new projects you will appreciate how the fundamentals can be built upon to produce a great end result. In our instructional design classes we do extensive reviews of many different projects that use the latest design technology, but sadly many so-called educational programs suffer major issues with user interaction that reduce their effectiveness. Any instructional designer that uses this text as the foundation for building their project will be much more likely to produce a more effective result.

There is a good overview of learning principles (behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism). If you are studying instructional design you will cover these topics in more detail in other texts. The three main sources of valuable information are screen design/menu navigation, types of projects (drill, tutorials, simulations, games, etc.) and the planning and production process. The authors have said in private communications that there are no plans to put out a new edition. Nonetheless this remains a top choice as a go-to practical reference for developing interactive learning content, and it is suitable for both anyone pursing a degree in instructional design or anyone who wants to learn more about the process.

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