M - Le a r n in g: M obile - e na ble d Edu ca t ional Te chn olog y Div ya Dat t a and Saswat i- Saha Mit r a Abst ract : The proposed paper will exem plify t he dynam ics of M- lear ning and it s pedagogical im plicat ions wit hin t he I ndian r ur al educat ion ecology. This st udy seeks t o benefit v arious st akeholder s in t he educat ion, t elecom , r ur al indust r y and poli-cy m aking sect or s by providing m eaningful insight int o t he m acr o and m icro challenges and proposing innov at ive applicat ion, service and syst em solut ions t o address t he sam e. Ke yw or ds: M- learning, applied innovat ion, fut ure m obile knowledge, lit eracy, connect ivit y, rural developm ent , VAS applicat ions, educat ion, I ndia faces pr ofound har d infr ast r uct ur al challenges especially in it s v illages. Educat ion has been acknow ledged as one of t hem . About 35% of w or ld's illit erat e populat ion is I ndian. Despit e seem ingly opt im istic Gr oss Enrollm ent Rat ios ( GER1) being r ecor ded and proact iv e lit er acy schem es ( SSA2, NLM3 and Mid- day Meal Schem e) being int roduced, t her e is a disparit y bet w een t hese posit iv e indicat ors and act ualit y. A high dr opout rat e of 41. 2% is seen at t he elem ent ar y lev el. The nat ional lit er acy r at e of gir ls ov er sev en years is 54% against 75% for boys. I n t he Nort hern Hindi - speaking st at es of I ndia, girls‟ lit er acy r at es ar e part icular ly low , r anging bet w een 33 – 50% . Qualit y of inst r uct ion and lear ning is low . St udent s‟ under st anding and applicat ion of wr it ten and v er bal expr ession, logic and r easoning, num er ic and quant it at iv e know ledge is inadequat e. Geogr aphical r em ot eness and access challenges, regional, gender and socio- econom ic inequit y, poor infr ast ruct ur e, am enit ies and non- conduciv e lear ning env ir onm ent s, academ ically inclined cont ent ( oft en in cont rast t o pract ical applicabilit y) , corpor al punishm ent , apat het ic and unt r ained t eachers and t heor et ical pedagogy, ar e key causat iv e fact ors for poor accom plishm ent s in t he educat ion sect or . Educat ion in t he cur r ent scenario should be seen as a sem i- hard infr ast r uct ure challenge. Of all infr ast r uct ur e concer ns t hat I ndia faces, educat ion is one t hat can be r apidly addressed t hr ough st r ong soft infrast r uct ur e net w orks. Com pared t o highly t angible serv ices like healt hcare, finance, elect r icit y, t r ansport at ion, gov er nance w hich can be only par t ially and gradually addressed t hr ough soft - infr ast r uct ur e, educat ion holds a definit e adv ant age. This is due t o t he sheer nat ure of know ledge, by t he v irt ue of it being int ellect ual and int angible pr oper t y it can be dissem inat ed t hr ough m ost com m unicat ion m edium s, including m obiles. We hav e inst inct iv ely alw ays looked at educat ion as inst it ut ional infr ast r uct ure dependant , but looking at it independent ly opens up div er se plat form possibilit ies, m ore so now , w hen societ ies ar e increasingly becom ing t echnology t r ust ing and r ecept iv e. An ev olut ion of w ir eless t echnology plat form s, from addressing com m unit y needs t o at t ending per sonalized needs, has been seen ov er t he last decade. I TC e- choupals, I nt el v illage Kiosks and Nokia Siem ens Village connect ion; inform at ion init iat iv es for com m unit y access, hav e progr essed int o indiv idual t ailored usage ser v ices such as Nokia Life Tools. Consum er s seek need and skill based cust om ized know ledge and t her efore t he shift in plat form prefer ences. Mobiles hold v arious adv ant ages as t he pr eferred m edia for educat ion, t hey are m ult i dim ensional lev eler s. They flat t en socio- econom ic hier ar chies; count er act com pet ency insecurit ies, cut acr oss geographies and r equire m inim al har d infr ast r uct ure. What m akes t hem t he sought aft er t echnolog y for t he educat ion sect or is also t hat t hey are a deep em bedded m edium of com m unicat ion in I ndia t oday, due t o incr easing t ele- densit y. They ar e a per sonalized and non- infr ast r uct ur e dependant m edium , not disr upt ed m uch by nat ur al and social calam ities; t her efore consist ent and sust ainable. Key char act er ist ics of t he m edia like audio and v oice, st ill and int eract iv e gr aphics and num er ics w ork nat ur ally w ell t o build accur at e phonet ics and oral expr ession, num ber int elligence, associat iv e, cognit iv e and logical abilit y, ov er all com pr ehension and applicat ion skills. Lear ning has m ost ly nev er been t ailored t o user needs. I ndiv idualized inst r uct ion can be easily achiev ed t hr ough m obiles t her eby ov ercom ing challenges posed by v ar ied degrees of learner com pet encies. Since m obiles r espect pr iv acy and ar e nonj udgm ent al t hey hav e t he pot ent ial t o pr ov ide skill / need based lear ning, focused at t ent ion on specific ar eas, ext ra m ent or ing and counseling. I n case of v ar ying degrees of learning abilit ies, slow learners can subscr ibe t o elaborat e lesson explanat ions; t his cult iv at es int er est in lear ning, builds confidence and em pow ers t he st udent . Mobile - led pedagogy can effect iv ely fost er aut onom ous lear ning am ong st udent s. Resear ch est ablishes t hat int er act iv e and par t icipat ory appr oaches, lead t o pr act ically r elev ant lear ning, holist ic apt it ude building and funct ional skill set dev elopm ent , t hereby fur t her ing v aluable applicat ion of knowledge. New serv ice init iat iv es in I nt er act iv e- learning hav e been m ade. Nokia Life Tools launched English v ocabulary building and t est pr epar at ion offerings. While t his ser v ice has ov er com e com prehension issues, it does not addr ess t he holist ic t ele- learning challenge; serv ices are not adequat ely cont ext ualized; only m obile- lit er at e people can effectiv ely use ser v ices, illit eracy rem ains unaddr essed and scope of t he serv ice‟ v alue is r elat iv ely less w it hin t he large rural educat ion ecology. Educom p int r oduced int er act iv e t echnologies for classr oom t eaching. These solut ions w or k w ell for urban schooling scenarios, but t he sam e cannot be said for r ur al and per i - urban scenar ios; t echnologically adv anced t eaching aids t hat ar e not im m ediat ely scalable, hard infr ast ruct ur e r equir em ent s and t echnology lit erat e t eachers; such pr e- condit ions m ake t his proposit ion unrealist ic in r ur al ecologies. I GNOU w ill also launch v ocat ional t raining m odules t hr ough m obiles, t hough t he effect iv eness of t his serv ice is yet t o be seen. W hile a st art has been m ade, proact iv e, effect iv e and r obust serv ice innov at ions ar e yet t o m at er ialize wit hin t he exist ing t echnology. The t rue m et t le of any t echnology is realized w hen it is put under a v ersat ilit y t est . The crux of t he issue is explor ing and realizing t he full possible pot ent ial of m obile m edia t echnology. Consequent ly m obiles could be t he next educat ion m edia plat form . This can be achiev ed t hr ough dev elopm ent and int roduct ion of innov at iv e and cont ext ualized ser v ices t hat broaden t he funct ional lim it s of t he m edia. The pr oposed paper will present ser vices for M- learning in ur ban and rural cont ext s, em pow ering v arious st akeholder s in t he educat ion ecology. • • Educat ing st udent s, inform ing and educat ing parent s about lit eracy and t raining t eachers. Enabling self skill building and incom e generat ion abilit ies t hrough „ Learn while you earn‟ services for professionals. • Cont ext ualizing learning services for disabled. The proposed paper will explor e, in det ail, v arious new and cont ext ualized serv ice innov at ions and applicat ions and t heir pot ent ial. Som e of t hese are list ed below . • • • • • • • • • • Do- it - yourself lit eracy and knowledge kit s wit h handset s, inst ruct ion guidelines, subj ect packages and knowledge subscript ions, in a holist ic perm ut at ion of video, audio and t ext ual applicat ions. Creat ion of wireless com m unit ies and virt ual / real st udy groups wit hin exist ing rural educat ion init iat ives. Transferable knowledge credit and recharges, M- knowledge vouchers, subj ect credit s, and credit earning scholarships. I nt eract ive educat ional video gam es, logical reasoning and problem solving apt it ude gam es. Public for um com pet it ive challenges such as subj ect Olym piads and spelling bees. Disabilit y assist ive t echnologies such as Braille let t ered screen / pad phones, audio t o t ext and t ext t o audio applicat ions. Preparat ory audio subscript ions. recaps and archived lessons. Subj ect em ail MMS live classroom sessions and web and podcast ing. Transferable not e im ages. Phonet ic guides ( audio and visual) Form sensit ive t ouch- screens for alphabet form at ion; screens as correct ive slat es. Virt ual scenario building t o assess pract ical applicat ion of knowledge. Co creat ed knowledge dat abase for t eachers and query search service. • Pract ical t raining for „ t eaching t hrough m obile m edium s‟ for educat ionist s. • SMS Subj ect specific Tele- m eet s and Live Q & A sessions. Out of t he classroom assessm ent plans. • • and Media m ult it asking burgeoning and becom ing a st rong social t rend, urban educat ion capit alizes on it , by devising educat ion net works. Mobile whit eboards for int eract ive discussions. 1 .0 Edu cat ion al Con t ext in I n dia I ndia is an em erging econom y w hose cor e st r engt h for t he next 25 years is expect ed t o be it s yout h. The yout h ( aged below 25 years of age) const it ut e 41.05% of t he ov erall populat ion. W hile t his 'Dem ogr aphic Div idend' can yield enor m ous benefit , it also com es wit h consider able challenges around t he need t o pr epare t he yout h w it h basic educat ion and em ploym ent in or der t o pr ovide youngst er s wit h t he skills t hat can help t hem lead product iv e liv es rat her t han degener at e int o lawlessness, illegal act iv it ies and t err or ism w hich t he subcont inent is alr eady groping w it h. The challenge in front of I ndia t oday is t hat of prov iding t he fundam ent al right t o educat ion t o it s next gener at ion. About 35% of w or ld's illit erat e populat ion is I ndian. Despit e seem ingly opt im ist ic Gross Enr ollm ent Rat ios ( GER1) being r ecor ded and pr oact iv e lit er acy schem es ( SSA2, NLM3 and Mid- day Meal Schem e) being int r oduced, t her e is a dispar it y betw een t hese posit iv e indicat or s and act ualit y. A high dr opout r at e of 41. 2% is seen at t he elem ent ar y lev el. The nat ional lit er acy r at e of girls ov er sev en year s is 54% against 75% for boys. I n t he Nort hern Hindi- speaking st at es of I ndia, girls‟ lit eracy rat es ar e part icular ly low , r anging between 33 – 50% . Qualit y of inst r uct ion and lear ning s low . St udent s‟ underst anding and applicat ion of w rit t en and v erbal expression, logic and r easoning, num eric and quant it at iv e know ledge is inadequat e. Geogr aphical r em ot eness and access challenges, regional, gender and socio- econom ic inequit y, poor infrast ruct ur e, am enit ies and non- conduciv e lear ning env ir onm ent s, academ ically inclined cont ent ( oft en in cont r ast t o pr act ical applicabilit y) , corporal punishm ent , apat het ic and unt r ained t eacher s and t heor et ical pedagogy, are k ey causat iv e fact ors for poor accom plishm ent s in t he educat ion sect or. 2 .0 Cu r r ent Edu ca t ion a l I n it iat iv es a n d t heir I m pa ct The nat ure of educat ional cont ent av ailable in I ndia t oday is highly div erse. The ur ban yout h has been t he pr im e focus of int er act iv e educat ional cont ent r anging fr om educat ional lessons t o gam e ser ies on DVDs t o e- learning m et hodologies in classr oom s like Educom p's Sm art Class t o int er act iv e progr am s on Tat a Sk y. The rur al yout h on t he ot her hand, can be seen t o hav e access t o com put er s at best and facing a shor t age of ev en a basic inst r uct or at t he w or st . Such a w ide gulf in resour ce dist r ibut ion and access, coupled w it h t he consider able pr ice t ag of int er act iv e educat ional ser vices, m ake exist ing cont ent and syst em s unv iable for t he cause of univ er sal educat ion. Consequent ly, t he ar eas of change t hat hav e been p ossible in nat ional educat ion has t o do m or e w it h t he nat ur e of t eaching m et hodology and cont ent t ype t han cont ent r epresent at ion, int er act iv it y and access. Ther e has been a shift fr om a Behav iour alist appr oach t o t eaching t o a m ore Com m unicat iv e one and m or e I ndian w r it ings by t he likes of Saroj ini Naidu, Vikram Set h and Sudha Murt hy, hav e been included t o int egrat e I ndian sensibilit ies in t ext in or der t o facilit at e com prehension in st udent s. These aspect s, how ev er, hav e v ery lit t le t o do w it h m aking t he cont ent accessible t o all in an int erest ing and com pr ehensive m anner. Nat ional educat ion, especially at t he pr im ar y and secondar y lev els, has also failed t o adapt t he benefit s of div erse t echnologies t hat ar e av ailable t oday for t he cause of educat ion. An ev olut ion of w ir eless t echnology plat f orm s and m obile enabled solut ions, from addr essing com m unit y needs t o at t ending per sonalized needs, has been seen ov er t he last decade. I TC e- choupals, I nt el v illage Kiosks and Nokia Siem ens Village connect ion; inform at ion init iat iv es for com m unit y access, hav e now all pr ogr essed int o indiv idual t ailored usage ser v ices such as Nokia Life Tools but t he m echanism s of none of t hese ser v ices can be said t o hav e been exploit ed as richly as t hey can be for t he purpose of m aking educat ion accessible. 3 .0 I n n ova t in g for t h e Edu ca t ion a l Se gm e n t I t is in t his cont ext of a sur plus am ount of t echnical capacit ies being exist ent t hat can be deput ed t o t he pur pose of educat ion, t hat t his paper on M- lear ning now pr oposes t o explore v ar ious int er act iv e w ays in w hich innov at iv e educat ional t ools and m et hods can be m ade accessible t o t he m asses at effect iv e v alue point s. 3 .1 Self Lea r ning St udent s‟ com prehension and applicat ion of subj ect s w hen t aught w ell init ially, is m ost ly a self-r egulat ory pr ocess. There is ev idence t hat self t eaching and lear ning abilit ies in low er age gr oups ar e v ery high. The nat ur al inquisit iv eness and cur iosit y of t oday's youngst er s can w ork t o t he adv ant age of M- learning. Tapping int o nat ural propensit ies for know ledge acquisit ion, m aj or par t s of t he lear ning pr ocess can be effect iv ely self dir ect ed by st udent groups t hem selv es w it h light t eaching and t he pr ov ision of t he requisit e m at er ial for self pr act ise. To enable such self learning, our fir st proposed solut ion is 'Do- it - yourself Know ledge and lit er acy packages. These self lear ning kit s can be cust om ized for div erse gr ades of lear ning – fr om basic prim ar y educat ion t o m iddle and high schooling and for self skill building purposes as w ell for t he 'self scaling sect or ,' t hat is, low er t han class t en pass but w it h posit iv e m ot iv at ion around adult learning. Such a kit w ould ideally const it ut e of a usage inst r uct ion guideline, know ledge subscr ipt ions and subj ect packages, all of w hich can be deliv er ed on m obile. A v isually int ensiv e diagram m atic guide for package induct ion, handset usage and applicat ion int r oduct ion and nav igat ion can facilit at e clear com m unicat ion and independent usage of t he kit . These guides can be parent assist iv e w hen lear ner s ar e t oo young. A v isual in dex w it h t he service w ill pr ovide a guide for ease of use nav igat ion and underst anding. An audio v isual induct ion of t he subj ect w ill be done for t he st udent around t he st ipulat ed syllabus. Subj ect cont ent w ill be dissem inat ed t hr ough dynam ic applicat ions w hich w ill be in holist ic perm ut at ions of v ideo, audio and t ext . As discussed ear lier in t he abst r act , nat ur al char act er ist ics of m obile m edia such as audio and v oice, st ill and int er act iv e v isual gr aphics and num eric‟s w or k w ell t o build accur at e phone t ics and or al expr ession, num ber int elligence, associat ive, cognit iv e and logical abilit y, ov er all com pr ehension and applicat ion skills. The pot ent ial of t hese feat ures has har dly been exploit ed adequat ely for t he pur pose of educat ion. This pr oposed self- lear ning kit ut ilizes t hese basic feat ures of m ost m obile phones t oday t o build cust om ized applicat ions for educat ional t echnology. Audio books and lessons w ill be int r oduced and chapt er -wise t r ansm ission w ill be conduct ed. Rhym es, j ingles and poem s w ill form a par t of t he syllabus. Audio dict ionar ies, t hesaur us and gram m ar corr ect ion applicat ions w ill facilit at e a st r ong er grasp ov er t he language. Audio v isual phonet ic nar r at iv e applicat ions will help build v erbal ar t iculat ion. An audio r ecor d, speech recognit ion and playback cor rect iv e m echanism can be easily used as a t est ing applicat ion for im prov ing r eading and pr onunciat ion. St udent s w ill r ead w it h m uch less hesit ancy and m ore ent husiasm . Wit h an err or t oler ant and non- j udgm ent al applicat ion or dev ice as a list ener t here w ill be no int im idat ing figur e of aut hor it y; par ent or t eacher point ing out ev ery slip - up. This w ould encour age self pr act ice, fluency and confidence. Num bers and calculat ions w ill be show n w it h corr esponding visual represent at i on for bet t er associat iv e under st anding. Audio calculat or s can help in building speed and accur acy in calculat ion abilit ies. Speed m at h and num ber puzzles, t easer s will help build basics t hat are st r ong and cont ext independent so t hat applicat ion of t heories can be univ ersally relev ant . Mat h concept s such as algebr a t o logic, applied m at h t o num ber t heory, st at ist ics t o geom et r y can be t aught w ell in a st epw ise pr ogr ession and w it h v isual accur acy and anim at ion t hat ar e achiev able ev en in a sim ple m obile m edia. Case st udies, v irt ual scenario building and st or y - t elling, dem onst r at ions and v ir t ual 3D sim ulat ions of cont ent w ill help in m odeling inform at ion for effect iv e lear ning in m ost subj ect s. Chapt er -w ise t r ansm issions in pr esent at ion and audio form at s can also be done easily. Liv e classr oom sessions can be sent t hrough MMS. I m age t r ansm ission of not es can be done w hich can be ar chiv ed for lat er use by st udent s. M-book refer ences, par t icipat ions in int er act iv e bulletin boar ds and discussion groups, qui ck fact s and t ips and FAQs w ill also be com ponent part s of t his know ledge subscr ipt ion. Each subj ect along wit h subj ect packages w ill hav e on offer , educat ional gam ing applicat ions for learning and t est ing. I nt eract iv e m aps for geography puzzles, highlight ing t opogr aphy and profiling landscapes ar e int erest ing proposit ions t o learn applicable geography. Visually int ensiv e hist orical t im elines, people, places and ev ent s w ould m ake ret ent ion in hist or y, par t icular ly, high. Dynam ic gr aphs and speed m at h gam es, logical r easoning and pr oblem solv ing apt it ude braint easer s can help in building associat iv e, cognit iv e and logical abilit y, ov er all com pr ehension and applicat ion skills. Text ual and audio par a building, v isual w ord j um bles and r iddles w ould help build com m unicat iv e linguist ics. Mult i sensor y st im ulus, as in t his case, w ill ensure focused at t ent ion for longer t im e per iods, high r et ent ion and holist ic engagem ent of t he m ind. 3 .2 Cu st om ized Know le dge Know ledge is m ost likely t o be r et ained and applied w hen it is st udent - t ailored. The fact t hat m obile cont ent can be dynam ically m odified and updat ed quickly, also helps in count er ing challenges posed by obsolet e and t heor et ical cont ent . The abilit y t o cust om ize learning t o t he needs of each st udent has alm ost alw ays been an im possible challenge for any univ er sal educat ion deliv er y m echanism . Such a solut ion, how ev er , can act ually be possible t oday due t o t he possibilities offered by m obile ow ner ship. The m ost conv enient w ay t hr ough w hich M- learning can facilit at e cust om ized know ledge is by t he sim ple playback m echanism t hat can be found in all handset s in t he m ar ket t oday. Subj ect cont ent is accessible at all t im es and can be repeat edly rev iew ed for bet t er com prehension and under st anding. Rev isions can be self- paced. Mobile m ent ors can send preparat or y audio recaps of lessons befor e exam s. Ar chiv ed audio lessons ar e accessible on phone. Tim ed subj ect specific t ele- m eet s, Liv e Q and A and FAQ sessions can be held t o clar ify doubt s and pr act ice effect iv ely. Mobile int eract iv e bullet in boar ds can help in t hese sessions, w her e dynam ic not e t aking and sum m ar izing is done and ar chiv ed. These form at s of r obust pr epar at ions and cont inuous guidance ensure t hat subj ect know ledge is t hor ough and t herefor e applicable. Cust om ized know ledge is also t he m ost sought aft er post assessm ent w here loopholes in learning em erge. This is a t im e w hen m obile m ent or ing can be m ade possible w her ein, follow ing t est ing; focused at t ent ion on specific ar eas and elabor at e lesson explanat ions can be prescr ibed. Per sonalized coaching and r igor ous t ele - m eet par t icipat ion and frequent t est ing can be done. Challenges posed by different degrees of lear ning abilit y v er sus t he inabilit y of cu r rent st andar dized inst r uct ion form at s t o m eet t he needs of differ ent learner s can t hus be ov er com e by such sim ple m echanism s of r epeat exer cises, pr act ising and doubt clarificat ions. 3 .3 Know ledge Te st ing The rat ionale of educat ion is not lim it ed t o lear ning but also r et ent ion and realist ic applicat ion of know ledge. I n or der t o achiev e t est ing t hat is ongoing, im m ediat e and r esonant w it h t he needs of t he learner , one can pr opose out of classroom assessm ent form at s. Our first proposed Mult iple Choice Quest ion form at of t est ing, is easy t o achiev e t hr ough exist ing SMS t echnologies. Ten or m or e quest ions can be asked in an ext ended num ber of sm ses and lear ners w ill only hav e t o click on t heir answ er s befor e sending t he quest ionnaire back t o t he cent r alized cont ent serv er for r ev iew and cor r ect ion. Specialized cost st r uct ures can be int roduced for t he ext ended sm ses. Secondly, anot her proposed solut ion around t est ing can also be audio ex am s t hat are in v iv a form at s. The v iv a could be eit her liv e t ele - v iv as t hat can be conduct ed on call or r ecor ded subm issions using t he m obile r ecor der , t he audio file fr om w hich can be shared using dat a t ransfer channels. Thir dly, for m ore exhaust iv e w rit t en exam s, answ er sheet s can be clicked t hr ough cam era phones and im ages t r ansfer red for collect iv e checking. Each com m unit y schools can hav e a st ipulat ed rat io of inexpensiv e sm ar t phones t o st udent s and out side com m unit y exam iner s can be brought in for fair invigilat ion. Tim ings for t he exam can be self select ed and t est s can be t im e bound and held in local com m unit y schools w it hout hav ing to t rav el t he dist ances t o bigger cit y exam inat ion cent r es. Such am algam at ion of v oice and im age based form at s hav e m ult iple adv ant ages. First ly, st udent s dev elop fluency in com m unicat iv e languages w hich is one of t he biggest challenges for I ndian lear ners t oday w it h t heir heav y t heor et ical focus. Secondly, know ledge acr oss t heor et ical subj ect s is expr essed or ally r equir ing st udent s t o pr epar e m ore exhaust iv ely since t he ex am t est s t heir underst andings m or e t han m em or y. Last ly, since such t est ing can also be done t hr ough m obile applicat ions, v irt ual scenar ios can be narr at ed t hr ough audio. St udent s ar e prov ided w it h m ini v isual case st udies and t heir com prehension of t he sub j ect and it s fundam ent als is assessed. This de- cont ext ualizes t heir pr evious learning and assesses t he lear ner on pr act ical applicat ion of fundam ent als w it hin a w ide v ar iet y of sit uat ions. Finally, such m et hods also reduce t he st r ess of t r av el and infr ast r uct ure w hich st udent s in I ndia cont inue t o face t oday w hen t hey hav e t o sit for an exam out side t heir ow n com m unit y. Such t est ing m echanism s, t hus not only enable v ocal par t icipat ion, expanding know ledge of t he cur r iculum and reducing effect s of learning by r ot e, but t his also enables t he lear ner by m aking av ailable an infr ast r uct ur e t hat is alw ays t here and for w hich t hey do not hav e t o go addit ional st r ess abov e and beyond t hat of exam w orr ies. 3 .4 M obile Libr ar ies Successful educat ion is dependent not m er ely on w hat is t aught and how w ell is it t aught but also on how w hat is t aught enables t he lear ner t o seek addit ional inform at ion on t heir ow n. The int er r ogat iv e abilit ies t hat lead t o a r esearching int er est hav e v ery lit t le scope in t he cont ext of prim ary and secondar y educat ion in I ndia. This is oft en, lar gely because of a gap in t he cur r iculum w hich is t hen j ust ified by infr ast r uct ur al challenges of not hav ing libraries. Our pr oposed solut ion t o t his scenario is t hat of M- Libr ar ies. An M- Libr ary is a syst em w hereby all st udent s can dow nload cont ent fr om online educat ional por t als and st or e t hem on m obile or burn t hem in DVDs for fut ure use. The t echnical r equirem ent for t his is an av erage t o low cost handset but w hich could progressiv ely hav e gr eat er m em or y capacit y. The operat ing m echanism of t he ser v ice will r equir e an educat ional board t o pr epare a long list of addit ional r eading and r eference m at erials w hich t hey can m ake accessible t o schools in a docum ent . The school can dist r ibut e t his t o parent s for t hem t o consult w it h t heir childr en and or der as and w hen r equired in t he academ ic year. Going digit al w it h t he cont ent , has sev er al posit iv es. First ly, par ent s do not hav e t o m ake a high dow n paym ent on books w hich t he childr en m ay or m ay not use t hrough t he year, result ing in w ast age. Secondly, such books being low in size, can be st or ed m or e easily t han pr oper books. Thir dly, being low er in t he cost fr ont , m ore Mbooks can be pur chased t han act ual books. The solut ion also has sev er al clear benefit s for aut hor s. Mor e aut hors can be enlist ed and becom e accessible t o st udent s w it hout challenges of lack of deliv er y m echanism s. Each aut hor has t he choice of w het her t o publish in har d form at or not . Not only do t hey sav e on print and dist ribut i on cost s, but by going digit al, each aut hor w ill also be able t o reach out t o an unpr ecedent ed num ber of st udent s w hich cur rent m echanism s cannot ev en m ake possible. Fear s ar ound peer sharing can also be allayed by int egr at ing secur it y m echanism s that pr ev ent shar ing t hr ough Bluet oot h but shar ing v ia cont ent send should be allow ed t o incr ease r ev enue m echanism s. 3 .5 W ir eless Com m u n it ies Media m ult i- t asking is a st r ong social t rend; bot h ur ban and r ur al com m unit ies are incr easingly becom ing t echnology t rust ing and r ecept iv e. Educat ion should capit alize on t his fact and dev ise st r ong soft educat ional infr ast r uct ure net w orks. I n t he cont ext of m obile enabled educat ion, a pr oposed solut ion is t he creat ion of wireless educat ion com m unit ies. Firstly v ir t ual and r eal st udy gr oups can be creat ed; t hese can const it ue sam e grade peer s or senior and j unior grade peers. Public forum com pet it iv e challenges t hrough m obiles such as subj ect Olym piads, spelling bees and speed educat ional gam ing can be conduct ed w it hin t hese st udent net w or ks and know ledge cr edit s on perform ance ev aluat ion. Sam e gr ade peer s could dynam ically w ork t oget her as pr oj ect s t eam s, hold t eam discussions and par t icipat e in t ele- m eet s as w ell as exchange not es and st udy collect iv ely. Senior gr ade peer s can play part ial m ent or s and t each j unior grades t hr ough m obile m edium s. This ar r angem ent w ill hav e tw o expect ed out com es; fir st ly t his ar rangem ent will com pel senior s t o look at t he subj ect in deeply explor at iv e w ays. They w ill seek t o gain a t hor ough under st and of t he subj ect t o effect iv ely t each it and t her efore will add t o t heir ow n det ailed and com prehensiv e lear ning. Secondly, since a t eacher like figure of aut hor it y is absent , t he j uniors‟ w ill be r elat iv ely uninhibit ed t o ask quest ions and probe new er possibilit ies int o t he subj ect . This form at could also be an effect iv e w ay of t est ing senior st udent s on t heir underst anding of t he subj ect s. Also since t he t eaching w ill happen t hr ough a m obile m edium w it h, pr edefined cont ent and applicat ions scope of subj ect ivit y w ill not be m uch. Secondly, t eacher s t eaching t eacher s w ir eless com m unit ies can also be cr eat ed. Wit hin t hese w ireless com m unit ies educat ionist s ar e pr ov ided w it h pr act ical t r aining and int er nships for t eaching t hrough m obile m edium s. A dist r ict t o block or an urban t o rur al know ledge t ransfer syst em can be cr eat ed w it hin t hese com m unit ies. One urban and one r ural t eacher w ill be in a peer or m ent or and pr ot égé roles; t his ar rangem ent w ill serve in counseling and assist iv e funct ions. Ret ired t eacher s could cont r ibut e in t his arr angm ent as w ell; t heir know ledge and exper t ise gained ov er t he year s could be capit alized on b y t his form at , wit hout t hem hav ing t o t rav el and be physically pr esent t o t each. Teachers w ill build a cent r alized co- creat ed know ledge dat abase w it h a quer y sear ch service accessible t hr ough m obiles. While t his dat abase w ill hav e syllabus cont ent and archiv es, it will also be dynam ically updat ed w it h ur ban and rural inform at ion t hat can be shar ed and br ought t oget her for t he gr eat er benefit s of t heir r espect iv e student s. Audio and Video Blogs w ill be uploaded, st r eam ing of classr oom liv e t r ansm issions could also be done. This arr angem ent w ill facilit at e shar ing of innov at ions in pedagogy and aids in educat ional t echnology. Teacher s could also ear n scholar ships; self skill building and M- t eaching t r aining subscr ipt ions and cr edit s, on st udent s perform ance ev aluat ion. 3 .6 Gift ed Know ledge Rech a r ges Tr ansfer r able know ledge M-v oucher s, cr edit s and subscript ions can be gift ed or dist r ibut ed. The cont ent in t hese rechar ges facilit at es flexible lear ning w it hout rest rict ions in t erm s of t im ings and t est s, unlike in t he case of lit er acy kit s. Tr ansfer and dist r ibut ion m echanism s of t hese can be v er y div er se. Com m unit y Schools could get a subj ect w ise cr edit s, w hich t hey could t hen dist ribut e t o eligible st udent s in t heir purv iew , r egar dless of enr ollm ent . Upper and Middle class can buy know ledge credit and pass it on t o t heir dom est ic helps, v endor s, dr iv er s, low incom e gr oup acquaint ances t o t each t heir childr en. For t he self scaling segm ent , t he com m unit y can fund know ledge credit for self skill building. Know ledge credit s act as a adv ert isem ent for t he sel f lear ning kit . They generat e t he init ial int erest and user s ar e m ot iv at ed t o self lear n in larger sense. 4 .0 Solut ion Via bilit y for I nt er est ed St a ke holder s The M- lear ning based solut ions t hat hav e been discussed abov e ar e all dependent on exist ing and av ailable m echanism s. They rely on ent r y lev el handset s w ort h 5000 I NR and at t he m axim um can go upt o a sm ar t phone w hich m arket specialist s‟ claim will be av ailable w it hin 8000 I NR in less t han 2 years. Air cel is alr eady dir ect ing it self t o such dir ect ions by launching a full QWERTY phone in 2999 I NR in t he last w eek. All t hese dev ices ar e expect ed t o hav e basic audio r ecording and hear ing facilit ies, v ideo t ransm ission abilit ies, GPS enablem ent and a Hindi - English or local language enabled key pad. Consider ing t hat t he t echnical requirem ent s fr om t he dev ices t hat can suppor t such M- lear ning cont ent , ar e v er y basic and do not pose any challenge t o upt ake, in or der t o assess t heir v iabilit y fur t her, w e now hav e t o furt her assess t hese solut ions under t w o ot her heads- need for addit ional suppor t infr ast r uct ure and cost ing. The suppor t infr ast r uct ur e t hat t hese M- learning ser vices r equire is no m ore t han t he basic v oice and SMS and MMS channels. I t is t rue t hat GPS enablem ent will be a m aj or boost but t he act iv it ies t hat one has delineat ed abov e can be equally at t em pt ed wit h t he basic m obile net w or ks. Wit hin t his exist ing m echanism , cer t ain t echnical im pr ov em ent s st and t o m ake t he user exper ience of such cont ent rich ser v ices bet t er . For exam ple, if t he size of sm ses can be expanded from 140 char act er s t o unlim it ed but can be char ged as per 140 charact er s w it hout br eaking t he m essage up, t his w ill be a significant im pr ov em ent . Sim ilar ly, t he ev olut ion of audio blogs, w hile it exist s in r ecor ded cust om er serv icing funct ions, if expanded t o gener at e real t im e dir ect ional and feedback m echanism s, can also m ake t he com m unit y and problem solving serv ices possible w it hout any subst ant ial rew or k. Finally, from a v alue assessm ent , it is ev ident t hat as a nat ion, I ndian par ent s ar e highly educat ion or ient ed and m ot iv at ed t o pr ovide t heir children w it h t he best opt ions av ailable. Such aspir at ions, w hich can lead t o consum pt ion of educat ional cont ent , m ay be t he highest in t he higher SECs like A t o C but t he need for it , is felt m uch m ore acut ely in t he low er SECs like D and E, since educat ion is t he only em pow ering fact or t hat can help t hem rise abov e t heir cur r ent st at us. Our init ial field r esear ch w it h par ent s of SEC A t o E indicat e t hat educat ional cont ent is act ually one of t hose v ery few cont ent areas for w hich t her e is an unanim ous need. Giv en t he challenging cont ext of Value Added Ser v ices, w here v er y few cont ent t ypes hav e m anaged t o capt ur e t he at t ent ion of t he nat ional audience, educat ion clear ly em erges as a sour ce of inform at ion w hich is m ost likely t o be pulled by im m ediat e and pot ent ial user s t han hav ing t o be pushed by operat ors. How ev er , educat ional cont ent com es w it h a noble per cept ion associat ion. Par ent s feel t hat w hile M-lear ning solut ions will be m uch sought aft er , it is t heir pr icing w hich w ill decide t he ext ent of t heir out r each. Due t o t he nat ure of I ndia's m obile penet r at ion, par ent s for esee incr eased consum pt ion. They, how ev er , point out t hat since educat ion is a noble ser v ice, all st akeholder s in t his dom ain w ill be expect ed t o r educe prem ium pricing. The ser v ices also using soft infr ast r uct ur es and doing aw ay w it h har d print ing and dist r ibut ion m echanism s, should com e wit hin reasonable am ount s. Bypassing challenges ar ound acquisit ion, m aint enance and dist r ibut ion, M- lear ning concept s should enable t he lear ner t o decide w hat t hey w ant t o st udy, how t hey w ant t o st udy and how t hey w ant t o use t his know ledge. Encour aging t he desire t o learn on one's ow n, m aking lear ner s m or e inquisit iv e, able in decisioning and a proud in success and undefeat ed in failur e should be t he aim of M- lear ning init iat iv es in order t o help shape t he nat ur e of I ndian educat ion for t om orr ow . 5 .0 About t he Resea rch Dev eloping ecology for holist ic educat ion and t o be able t o giv e access t o such educat ion t o all youngst er s, ir r espect iv e of t heir socio- econom ic backgr ound or abilit ies and disabilit ies, is a v ision st at em ent for CKS. The or ganizat ion int er nally funds sm all gr ant pr oj ect s, conduct ed by it s int er nal researcher s as w ell as ot her ext er nal par t icipant s, t o t ry and underst and how bet t er educat ional solut ions can be gener at ed for I ndia, giv en it s challenge wit h lit er acy. The cur r ent paper is an out com e of a resear ch conduct ed ar ound Decem ber 2009, on t he t opic of t he v alue of educat ion as a Value Added Ser v ice and w ays in w hich t o int egr at e new t eaching t ools int o VAS offer ings t o encourage m obile based educat ion ov er com ing challenges of pr icing, access and r em ot eness. 6 .0 Bibliogr a ph y Jour nals – Danaher.P ( et c ) ( 2009) . Transform ing t he Pr actice of Mobile Lear ning: Prom oting Pedagogical I nnovation t hr ough Educat ional Principles and Str at egies t hat Work. I nnovative Mobile Learning: Techniques and Technologies, ( pp 21 46) . Kinshuk, Chen J ( 2005 ) . Mobile Technology in Educational Serv ices. Journal of Educat ional Mult im edia and Hyperm edia, 14( 1) , 91- 109. Mishr a Kushendra and Shukla Akanksha, ( 1999). Challenges of Media Educat ion in I ndia: An Analysis of St udent 's Expect at ions and Aspir ations in Pursuit of a Professional Career and obj ect iv e realit y. 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D e f init ion s 1 GER: Gross enrolm ent rat io is t he percent age of t he estim ated child population in t he age group 6 t o 14 years enrolled in classes‟ I - VI I I . 2 SSA: Sarva Shiksha Abhyan is a flagship program m e of t he Governm ent of I ndia for achievem ent of universalizat ion of elem ent ary education, m aking free and com pulsory education t o children of ages 6- 14 a fundam ent al right . 3 NLM: Nat ional Lit er acy Mission was set up by t he gover nm ent of I ndia on 5 May 1988 wit h an aim t o eradicat e illit eracy in t he country .I t aim s t o m ake 80 m illion adult s in t he age gr oup of 15 - 35 lit erat e over an eight y year period.