Title: Designing for sensing, sensibilities, and sense-making

Authors: Carol Strohecker

Addresses: 105 Lower Rathmines Road, No. 103, Dublin 6, Ireland

Abstract: During recent decades, miniaturisation and affordability of silicon chips have led to pervasiveness of devices for computation and communication. Now sensing technologies are becoming smaller and cheaper, and therefore more widely available to augment capabilities of mobile computational devices. These capabilities pose new challenges in designing tools and experiences for learning. Three experimental devices address such challenges as they enable collecting information from physical and social environments, and reflecting on its implications in personal and public spheres: |Nature Trailer| is a location-aware story and decision-making tool for hikers; |Smoke Rings| detects environmental tobacco smoke and projects potential consequences of prolonged exposures; and |TexTales| co-opts cameras and mobile telephones as tools for developing public opinion.

Keywords: sensors; mobile computing; learning tools; learning environments; constructivity design; multimodal representations; intermodal literacies; mobile phones; mobile communications; cameras; public opinion; environmental tobacco smoke; tobacco smoke exposure; location awareness; decision making; learning experiences; hikers.

DOI: 10.1504/IJKL.2005.007764

International Journal of Knowledge and Learning, 2005 Vol.1 No.3, pp.269 - 285

Published online: 15 Sep 2005 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article