Effective Integration of Mobile Applications in the Context of Education System

Abstract

With the advancement of wireless communication and portable devices, mobile users not only access information ubiquitously, but also use mobile devices for business transactions. Users exchange location, preferences and purchase details for discounts and privileges, in commercial applications. Mobile applications for educational purposes have plausible prospects. Applications for an educational gaming purpose, a classroom management control, a reference tool and an online study group can be developed. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) aim to bring education to the entire world online, with access to university level courses, thereby promising a quality educational experience. This paper presents the concept applied in M-Commerce transactions, wherein a real time mobile application for an educational portal is developed, to enable e-learning in a wireless environment. It utilizes an Android platform for learners to access and refer online study materials, test themselves through mobile devices, and view their evaluation results. Consequently, intra and interdepartmental group analyses are generated, for assessment by academic heads. It also provides an opportunity to improve students' performance, for enlightening themselves intellectually and for sharing the knowledge gained among peers. This proposed model could be implemented as a MOOC across groups of institutions, interactive study forums and networking communities.