Abstract:

The main purpose of this paper is to raise awareness about disadvantageous learners in open education system by developing an adaptive and responsive augmented reality application according to universal design principles for the experts in open education system and testing its usability. With this augmented reality application, how to organize open and distance learning environments of disadvantageous groups will be explained and examples will be given about how to produce and develop to satisfy learning needs of disadvantageous groups for different platforms like mobile tools, wearable technologies and so on.

The research has the aim of important contribution to literature about new technolgoies and disadvantageous learners. Aimed targets are intended to be reached with the finale of the paper. In this way, it is thought to be contributed to the mass usage in mobile learning and creating accessible environments in different open and distance learning applications with new technologies. On the other hand, during literature review, it is observed that the number of studies about new technologies associated to mobile learning and disadvantageous learners is limited. There is no study found which handles the subject directly in terms of usability. In this view, the paper will be the first in literature. This situation, which shows the original value of the paper, will contribute to the related literature as an original study and make these environments accessible by bringing a new viewpoint to mobile learning.

This research is a qualitative state study. Usability of new technologies shaped according to universal design principles in open and distance learning environments to raise awareness about disadvantageous learners will be questioned through approaching in holistic view to a single situation while gathering both qualitative and quantitative data. Disadvantageous groups’ learning needs will be diagnosed, theoretical data about how to develop a Mooc website in mobile learning will be collected and analyzed. For this, national and international literature will be scanned, the problem about disadvantageous learners will be defined and the current situation will be determined. The situation which is wanted will be diagnosed via Delphi study with at least three sessions and the gap between the situation wanted and the current situation will be diagnosed via a call conference.

Keywords:

Open and Distance Learning, Disadvantaged Learners, Mobile Learning, New Technologies.