Authors:
Loreta Juskaite
1
;
Laura Dzelzkaleja
1
;
Aleksandrs Ipatovs
2
and
Atis Kapenieks
1
Affiliations:
1
Distance Education Centre, Riga Technical University, Kronvalda blv.1, Riga, Latvia
;
2
Institute of Telecomunications, Riga Technical University, Azene str. 12, Riga, Latvia
Keyword(s):
Mobile Apps, Physics Education Process, Skills.
Abstract:
Mobile apps have immense potential for being used in Physics education as more innovative educational tools. They extend learning activities such as practice and application out of the classroom. The teacher needs to be guided to maximize the outcome of using the mobile apps and to reach the best results. When deciding to use mobile apps, the teacher should be sure to choose the most effective tool to reach the learning goal. This paper reflects current mobile app usage situation Latvian schools for teaching and learning Physics. The research was conducted using surveys, lesson observations, and focus group discussions. The number of participants were 1547 students and 67 teachers. Two main research questions for this study were: 1. How do Physics teachers utilize mobile apps in Physics education? 2. Which criteria do Physics teachers consider while selecting mobile apps for education? Study shows that almost all the teachers (n=64) agreed that mobile app integration into Physics sub
ject activities could promote personalization. For students to develop content or educational product, teachers preferred apps such as Meter app (Sound meter, Light Meter, Lux Meter, atmospheric pressure), App Inventor, Scratch & Arduino.
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