MicroCAS: Design and implementation of proposed standards in micro-learning on mobile devices

Abstract

As learners start to become more attuned to using mobile devices, learning-on-the-go is but a natural progression to their way of discovering new knowledge. Whilst the mobile web provides a vast resource of knowledge, structured learning is still one of the most effective means of education. Unlike desktop and portable computers, mobile devices are resource constrained, i.e., lower processing power and less storage capacity, which limits its capability to process large learning resources, or learning objects. This provides an opportunity to introduce micro-learning, a way to shrink a learning material to its smallest and most compact component for easier transmission and lower storage requirement, whilst preserving its effectivity. This paper proposes a platform that implements the proposed standards in creating micro-learning content for mobile devices. The standards cover the recommended technical specifications for software for mobile devices and content packaging format of the learning content. The web-based authoring tool of the platform will allow the teachers to develop micro-learning courses that the learners can access through a mobile application.