35 of the mobile devices are not designed for educational purposes and for mobile
phones which are appropriate for specific learning tasks are too expensive for most learners to buy such as smart phones or tablets with high capabilities. Due to
the disadvantages of mobile devices as a learning tool, the researcher is really pay attention on the size of the content in the application.
d. Principles of M-Learning M-learning using mobile devices has advantages and disadvantages as
learning tool as has been discussed in the previous part in this chapter. So, in developing m-learning tool, the researcher considers about the Universal
Instructional Design UID principles. Elias 2010 as stated by Elias 2011 extracted the eight UID principles particularly useful in distance education DE.
The table below shows the comparison the most relevant recommendations arising from UID principles for online learning with a series of additional
recommendations for m-learning.
Table 2.6 UID Recommendations for Inclusive M-Learning, Adapted from Elias 2011
UID Principles Online
DE Recommendations
M-Learning Recommendation 1. Equitable use
- put the content online - provide translation
- deliver content in the simplest possible format
- use cloud-computing file storage
2. Flexible use - present content and
accept assignments in multiple formats
- offer choice and additional information
- package content in small chunks - consider unconventional
assignment options - leave it to learners to illustrate
and animate courses
3. Simple and intuitive
- simplify interface - offer offline and text-only
options - keep code simple
- use open-source software
4. Perceptible - add captions, descriptors
36
information and transcriptions
5. Tolerance for error
- Allow students to edit posts
- issue warning using sound and text
- Scaffold and support situated
learning methods
6. Low physical and technical
effort - incorporate assistive
technologies - consider issues of
physical effort - check browser
capabilities - use available SMS readers and
other mobile-specific assistive technologies
7. Community of learners and
support - include study groups and
tools - easy-to-find links to
support services - encourage multiple methods of
communication - group learners according to
technological access andor preferences
8. Instructional climate
- make contact and stay involved
- push regular reminders, quizzes and questions to students
- pull in learner-generated content
Those UID principles for m-learning are as the fundamental for the researcher to develop the application for this research. The further definition of those seven
principles as stated in Elias 2011; 1 Equitable use, it means that the course
content should be accessible to people with different abilities and locations, 2
Flexible use, this course design found in the application should accommodate a
wide range of individual abilities, preferences, levels of connectivity, and choices in methods of use. This principle allows the device to provide multimedia features
such as audios songs and small talks, pictures. Further, the devices used in m- learning should be able to capture their own material or the result of doing
exercises and transfer them to the lecturers via social media like WhatsApp and
BBM Blackberry Messenger, 3 Simple and Intuitive, recently, the simplest
mobile delivery system is not SMS short message services anymore, but there are more simple mobile delivery systems with high capabilities in transferring
37 messages, images, even videos such as WhatsApp, BBM, Facebook Messenger,
etc, 4 Perceptible information, the additional of captions, descriptors, and transcription if necessary, 5 Tolerance for error, UID principles minimize
hazards and adverse consequences of errors in software operation by designing learning environments with a tolerance of error. Job performance aids included in
the learning package may reduce learner errors by providing just in time training
and as and when required, 6 Low physical and technical effort, M-learning
should be developed requiring a low technical and physical effort. The physical
effort related to inputting text into devices, 7 Community of learners and support, this principle enables the learner to communicate one another such as
the use of feature Chat, voice communication, instant messaging so that the learners can work collaboratively. It also enables the learners to create group, 8
Instructional climate,
this principle focuses in the instructor‟s impact in course delivery as opposed to course design. The instructor or lecturer can send regular
message to interact with the learners in various ways, such as sending reminders, requests and questions. The instructor can also pull the students‟ generated
content in various forms WhatsApp, BBM, Facebook, audios, etc.
e. The Characteristics of Well-Designed Software There are some characteristics of well-designed software which are
important to develop software. Egbert Hanson-Smith 1999 suggest the characteristics; those are 1 consistency, 2 good useof space, 3 legibility, 4
contrast, repetition, alignment, and proximity, 5 ease of navigation and recovery, 6 high-quality playback.
38 Consistency means that the placement of elements on the screen remains
stable from one display to the next; color, layout, capitalization and fonts must be consistent. The terminology used in prompts, menus, and helps screens is
consistent from one part to another. Good use of space, means that each section of content should fit onto one screen, and different parts of the information should be
distinguished from one part to another spatially rather than through variations in color, style or other treatments. Legibility, the text on the screen must be legible
i.e. the letter forms must be easy to see and readable i.e. lines of text must be easy to scan in normal reading patterns. Contratst, repetition, alignment, and
proximity, different elements should contrast clearly with each other, whereas logos and navigation buttons should be repeated in order to unify the various
screens in the same section. Each element on the screen should be align either horizontally or vertically against a few locations on an invisible, consistent grid
that give structure to the individual displays while uniting all the screens of a program in a consistent design. Ease on navigation and recovery, the software
should ignore nonsensical choices or commands and provide clear instructions for recovery if users get into trouble. High quality playback, it means that audio and
video playback must be of sufficiently high technical quality p. 442-445.
8. Mobile Assisted Language Learning MALL
Recently, mobile technologies are very familiar among people either as teacher or learner. Around us there are a lot of people using gadget, most of them
use gadget with Android as the Operating System for Android OS the gadget. In
39 the Android smart phone or tablet, there is an application named Google Play
Store where the user can download and install applications they want to.
a. The Concept of MALL The user can find many various applications there. The application has some
categories such as education, lifestyle, book, dictionaries, entertainment and so on. It indicates that mobile technologies have affected many other field including
education. Kukulska- Hulme and Lesley 2008 states that “as the wireless
network expands and ownership of devices that can communicate with such networks increases, the use of mobile devices to support language learning
becomes more common in the society. They also state that MALL is different from Computer Assisted Language Learning CALL. The differences are in its
use of personal, portable devices that enable new ways of learning, emphasizing continuity or spontaneity of access and interaction across different contexts of
use.” AbuSa‟aleek 2014 also claims that mobile phone became an important component in the world especially in the field of education, so that it suggests the
think of using technology in language learning activity. The mobile phone most of them right now are able connect with the
internet. It suggests that the knowledge can be accessed via mobile phone also. The knowledge in this study refers to language knowledge so that the language
learner can also learn from the gadget which is developed into Mobile Assissted Language Learning MALL. Miangah and Nezaret 2012 claim that MALL
deals with the use of mobile technology in language learning. The students do not only learn language in the classroom but they can learn English through the
