Myartspace: Design and evaluation of support for learning with multimedia phones between classrooms and museums

This paper presents a description and evaluation of Myartspace, a service on mobile phones for inquiry-led learning that allows students to gather information during a school field trip which is automatically sent to a website where they can view, share and present it, back in the classroom or at home. The evaluation focused on three levels: a micro level, concerned with issues of usability; a meso level, which examined educational effectiveness in terms of learning breakthroughs and breakdowns; and a macro level, which looked at the impact of the new technology on school museum visits practice. Issues of implementing mobile learning across school and museum settings are identified and cross-level influences are discussed. The study showed that the service was effective in enabling students to gather information in a museum and this provided resources for effective construction and reflection in the classroom. Minor usability problems did not detract from the learning, however there are significant issues concerning how to structure the visit and on the viability of Myartspace as a regular service.