Hi, Here are a couple that I am using
1) A warm up for the class (What app needs to be developed)? 2) This is based on the book that I wrote with Jonathan BEFORE smart phones (write a new vignette that updates the ones in the book) 3) Dissect an old mobile phone to find the different parts. Bring an old non-functional phone. Find the microphone, the mother board, the antenna, etc. Then this goes over to a discussion of recycling phones, what happens when functional and non-functional phones get sent off to the developing world and, more to the point, where can we responsibly recycle all the parts from the destroyed phones nearby. 4) Look at the Maitland report (1984?) on telephony in the developing world and then use ITU data to try and update some of the charts. 5) Download Frontline SMS within a group (it is a system that allows for broadcasting of SMS that is used in organizations in developing countries) 6) Do a quasi-self administered focus group on the similarities and differences between SMS and mobile Facebook (This one is interesting to me because it updates me on how these two messaging systems are playing out in the lives of teens.) 7) Set up a 3 Ushahidi pages and then send students out to report in on the location of for example people panhandling, uncollected trash and streets that need repair in Copenhagen. Thanks for this thread Katy. Rich L. On Thu, Aug 16, 2012 at 1:58 AM, Leysia A Palen <pa...@cs.colorado.edu>wrote: > Hi Katy and all, > > In class that is not about mobile communication per se, but IS about > user-centered design (for computer scientists) and using observation in the > world as a way to uncover design problems, opportunities, and inspirations, > I have students use the cameras on their mobile phones to capture visuals > while they are out and about in the world, as a form of a visual diary. I > call it the "Technoculars" assignment---it lasts 1/2 a semester, and > there's a theme every week to help guide observation for novices. They > upload their images to a Ning site that we use for class, and by the end, > we have a huge catalog of usability and other design problems that everyone > can share. The user-generated content also is displayed on the main course > page--I think the students like that. > > It has been a helpful way to use mobile tech instructively. I speculate > that the lens of the camera helps more quickly focus the "ethnographic eye" > that I try to help my (sometimes unwilling) computer science ugrads develop. > > Best > Leysia > > On Aug 15, 2012, at 5:44 PM, Katy P wrote: > > > What sort of activities do you do with undergrads regarding mobile > communication? > > > > Some things that I've done: > > > > - diaries of their day and then have them reflect upon their technology, > and specifically mobile technology, use > > - exercises where they imagine life in 1980 or have them watch a tv > show/read a short story pre-mobiles and reflect on how things are different > with mobile tech > > - figure out how much their mobile bill is and then make up a pretend > budget for a 1st/2nd-year-out-of-college person and see how much their > telecommunications cost relative to the rest of their budget > > - playing around with GapMinder > > > > Any other mobile-related in-class activities that people have tried? > > > > Thanks! > > Katy > > ============================ > Leysia Palen > Associate Professor > Computer Science > University of Colorado, Boulder > > Connectivity Lab > Project EPIC: Empowering the Public with Information in Crisis > > http://www.cs.colorado.edu/~palen/ > http://epic.cs.colorado.edu/ > Twitter: @palen, @epiccolorado > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "mobile-society" group. > To post to this group, send email to mobile-society@googlegroups.com. > To unsubscribe from this group, send email to > mobile-society+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. > For more options, visit this group at > http://groups.google.com/group/mobile-society?hl=en. > > -- Rich L. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "mobile-society" group. To post to this group, send email to mobile-society@googlegroups.com. To unsubscribe from this group, send email to mobile-society+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. For more options, visit this group at http://groups.google.com/group/mobile-society?hl=en.
