Abstract:

Modern poster presentations, whether on display at international conferences or used as an educational learning tool in the classroom, have mostly followed a standard traditional format, relying on a paper or cloth medium to impart information to a specified audience. Sometimes these printed posters offer attendees additional materials, such as links to web-pages or downloadable content which can offer a deeper insight into the poster’s theme. Yet fundamentally these digital aspects of a poster are mere add-ons and therefore the information displayed on the poster is still very much fully in the control of the presenter.

This presentation will attempt to showcase the largely untapped potential of digital technology, specifically incorporating mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, in order to create digital, interactive posters that can greatly enhance and enrich the viewer’s experience. By incorporating free digital features that can be easily designed and developed via mobile devices or computers, the presenter will highlight the interactive potential of digital posters, not only as an educational learning tool but also as a conference presentation.

Included in the presentation will be detailed research into the effectiveness of digital posters as a language-learning tool when incorporated as part of a language-learning course at the university level. The presentation will offer instruction as to how students used mobile devices to design interactive digital posters by utilising easy-to-access mobile technology. The digital posters developed within the language-learning course provide for a more engaging format than the traditional arrangement of a printed poster. Rather than automatically processing the poster elements in a prescribed sequence implied by the poster creator’s physical layout, a digital poster allows visitors to download the poster to a mobile device and then re-prioritise any details in an order and pace that are of most interest to them. In essence the poster presentation has been flipped, allowing the visitor the ability and freedom to not only access information of most interest to them, but also to interact digitally with the poster creator through varied embedded content within the digital poster. This also offers the opportunity, if required, for the poster to become a virtual presentation accessible to anybody, anywhere.

Visitors to the poster presentation will be able to witness the development stages of a digital poster via their mobile device and will be allowed the opportunity to edit and re-organise the format for themselves by downloading a free mobile application (app). Finally, the presentation will also offer a guide that will detail how visitors can develop and adapt the digital poster concept to fit alternative learning environments.

Keywords:

Mobile Learning, Digital Posters, Interactive Learning, CALL.