Spring Break
Univ. gives some students iPhones, iPods
Chris Yu
Issue date: 9/4/08 Section: News
The university gave away free mobile Internet devices to select students in an effort to see if such tools can enhance the learning experiences of its users, a school official said.
Called the Mobility Initiative, the project began at the start of the semester and will examine whether students can effectively use educational applications on iPods and iPhones, said Phyllis Dickerson Johnson, a spokeswoman for the Office of Information Technology.
"I think [this project is] going to be very, very effective," said Kent Norman, a psychology professor and member of the Mobility Initiative Steering Committee. "I think it's essential to the campus."
The 133 freshmen, including Banneker-Key scholarship recipients and members of the Maryland Incentive Awards Program, had the option of choosing either an iPod Touch or an iPhone 3G for this study, Dickerson Johnson said. The iPod Touches were free, while the iPhones required students to sign a two-year contract with AT&T.
Once students made their selections, they could then use their devices to access educational applications designed by the university, Dickerson Johnson said. As a part of the Mobility Initiative, the university reformatted two university websites - MyUM portal, where students can check class schedules, grades and other academic information, and ELMS, where students can check assignments and participate in discussions - to be more functional on a smaller screen Dickerson Johnson added.
The handheld devices will also be able to access MyeVyu, an advanced application that helps students navigate and plan trips on and around the campus. According to the Mobility Initiative website, this program that was originally developed for the Nokia Smartphone can pinpoint where the user is located and give directions to another place on school property.
In addition, MyeVyu will list Shuttle-UM and Metrobus schedules, help students locate the closest bus stop and tell users all the bus routes that come at a particular stop, said Ashok Agrawala, a computer science professor and lead developer of the program. By using GPS, MyeVyu can also memorize the location of where students park their cars. And for safety purposes, the program has a panic button feature, which sends the identification and location of the user to a police dispatcher in the event of an emergency.
Called the Mobility Initiative, the project began at the start of the semester and will examine whether students can effectively use educational applications on iPods and iPhones, said Phyllis Dickerson Johnson, a spokeswoman for the Office of Information Technology.
"I think [this project is] going to be very, very effective," said Kent Norman, a psychology professor and member of the Mobility Initiative Steering Committee. "I think it's essential to the campus."
The 133 freshmen, including Banneker-Key scholarship recipients and members of the Maryland Incentive Awards Program, had the option of choosing either an iPod Touch or an iPhone 3G for this study, Dickerson Johnson said. The iPod Touches were free, while the iPhones required students to sign a two-year contract with AT&T.
Once students made their selections, they could then use their devices to access educational applications designed by the university, Dickerson Johnson said. As a part of the Mobility Initiative, the university reformatted two university websites - MyUM portal, where students can check class schedules, grades and other academic information, and ELMS, where students can check assignments and participate in discussions - to be more functional on a smaller screen Dickerson Johnson added.
The handheld devices will also be able to access MyeVyu, an advanced application that helps students navigate and plan trips on and around the campus. According to the Mobility Initiative website, this program that was originally developed for the Nokia Smartphone can pinpoint where the user is located and give directions to another place on school property.
In addition, MyeVyu will list Shuttle-UM and Metrobus schedules, help students locate the closest bus stop and tell users all the bus routes that come at a particular stop, said Ashok Agrawala, a computer science professor and lead developer of the program. By using GPS, MyeVyu can also memorize the location of where students park their cars. And for safety purposes, the program has a panic button feature, which sends the identification and location of the user to a police dispatcher in the event of an emergency.
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07 Alum #3747465484657
posted 9/04/08 @ 3:32 PM EST
Dear UMD,
Stop sending me donation requests when you're squandering money on half baked ideas like this (among other things). People who can't remember where they park, or read posted bus schedules at every stop probably don't have the mental capacity to operate an iphone / ipod touch. (Continued…)
Paultry Attempt
posted 9/05/08 @ 8:30 AM EST
So you're telling me that if a student is smart enough to get into the school he may still need help finding his classroom?
The only business application is how to make money by conning the students and administration. (Continued…)
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