Abstract:

Mobile learning is a process of receiving learning content anytime, anywhere and with any kind of mobile devices. Content management plays an important role to deliver the learning content appropriate to the learner’s goals, situation and resources. My proposed model use generic templates to make content development for different devices. These generic templates are based on four critical factors, namely, memory, resolution, colour, and browsing capability. This model gives more freedom to the users to decide what and how they wanted to view their learning content with their device capabilities in mind. One’s mobile device may be capable to display videos and images but if the user only wanted to view text content due to slow connectivity, low battery, or for any other reasons, different templates will be applied to execute their requirements. So, the content adaptations for these generic templates are based on device capabilities and user preferences. My content delivery method is based on mixture of mobile pull and push services. For mobile devices without browsing capability, content will be delivered mainly through push technology which the content delivery is based on time tabling method. Students register their particulars and their preference together with their convenience time slots to receive the mobile content. For devices without browsing capability, changes in their preference need to be done through web registration page. The MRCB architecture was created to cater adaptation that involved Memory, Resolution, Colour, and Browsing capabilities in order to support any device mobile learning. This model allows multiple adaptation techniques and transformation processes while more emphasis is given to the actual meaning of the content at the target devices. My study identified generic templates that were created based on device capabilities and users preferences and adaptation techniques are based on these templates. Basically, the content adaptation and transformation are initiated by user preferences, mobile device capabilities, and suitable templates. Learning content will go through a series of adaptation process in order to meet the constraints of end devices and user preference. Original content might need to apply more than one adaptation process before it’s ready to be viewed by users of particular mobile device. There are four possible different templates to be considered before content distributed into any mobile devices. In general content template is divided into two, namely, Active Template (AT) and Passive Template (PT). AT is applied for devices with browsing capability and PT for devices without browsing capability. In AT, students can load image, video and audio by clicking on the links given in the content. In PT, image, video and audio files will be delivered as separate files. So, there is no interaction between the template and student. The formations of these templates are based on Template Decision Tree (TDT). Tracing down this TDT will define type of template to be used for a particular device and also based on the user’s request. This TDT consist of five decision points where each point utilizes critical factors in order to extract best suitable template that bring value to the students. Browsing capability became the major decision maker on how the content will apply in one template.

Keywords:

active template, passive template, adaptation, transformation, critical factors.