Enhancing Children's Learning Experiences
by Integrating Outdoor and Classroom Activities
Interaction Technology Laboratory, Department of Frontier Informatics
Graduate School of Frontire Sciences, The University of Tokyo
Principal Investigator: Masanori Sugimoto (sugi [atmark] itl.t.u-tokyo.ac.jp)
Project members: Pamera Ravasio, Hitoshi Enjoji, Sosuke Miura
PROJECT ABSTRACT: A system called SketchMap for supporting children's
outdoor/classroom learning is described. They use a tablet PC augmented
with a GPS receiver and a USB camera, and are asked to draw a map in an
outdoor environment. During the map creation tasks, they can easily record
what they have found by drawing it or by capturing it in an image, a sound,
or a video. The maps created by children are used for enhancing their further
learning in their classroom. By allowing individual children to share their
own outdoor experiences through the maps, SketchMap supports children's
collaborative knowledge sharing and construction processes. The SketchMap
project is in progress. The current version of SketchMap has been used in
classes of "Safety Map" and "Nature Exploration" in a Japanese
elementary school.
Impact on Children Learning / Instructor Teaching
Figure 1. How learning changes by integrating classroom and outdoor activities
In conventional classrooms in Japanese elementary schools, children are asked
to learn knowledge from textbook / teachers in classrooms, conduct fieldwork
surveys (e.g. visit factories), or look for related information at libraries
or web pages for investigative learning. In these activities, children use
paper and pencil in some case, and computers in other cases. Experiences or
information gained through these activities are not linked together, and
therefore, it is difficult to utilize them in order to contextualize their
learning in an easy manner.
The proposed system makes it possible to digitally record experiences and
information acquired by children through their outdoor and classroom activities.
The seamless integration of outdoor and classroom activities allows children
to (1) share individual children's information and knowledge with others,
and (2) discuss with others by reflecting their outdoor and classroom activities.
The proposed system that fully utilizes mobile and wireless technologies
allows children to share and reuse their learning outcomes based on their
learning context. Thus, a model of a course with the proposed system will
change from the "knowledge transmission" from teachers to children, to
"collaborative knowledge construction" with children and schoolteachers.
