A contribution to the adoption of software product lines in the development of mobile learning applications

Abstract

The increasing presence of mobile devices in the society has motivated the use of these gadgets in several segments. This reality has contributed to the emergence of a new and innovative modality of learning — the mobile learning, or simply, m-learning. In short, mobile learning is based on the use of a set of specific mobile applications, which possesses similar features and specific characteristics according to the learning goals. In a different but related perspective, the emerging reuse technique of Software Product Line (SPL) allows mass customization and systematic derivation of products, such as mobile learning applications. Motivated by this scenario, we have worked on the establishment of M-SPLearning, a SPL to the mobile learning applications domain. M-SPLearning has been developed throughout a proactive adoption model, according to the basics of Service-Oriented Architecture (SOA). In this paper, we discuss the main aspects of the development of M-SPLearning, focusing on the implementation phase. Also, as a case study, we illustrate two products generated by the SPL proposed. The main results obtained suggest the practical feasibility of adopting M-SPLearning in the development of mobile learning applications.