Abstract
Field trips favor learning by improving student observation, discovery, and communication skills, increased understanding of content and expansion of learning possibilities through real experiences. However, during field trips, students and teachers face obstacles that may compromise the results of these educational practices, such as insufficient content or student dispersal. In this sense, mobile technologies have been used to overcome existing difficulties and extend the benefits of field trips by providing tools that expand the resources for student learning. This paper describes a case study conducted in a field class of an undergraduate geology course in which students used mobile technologies to aid in learning about geological mapping. After use in real situations, the seventeen students answered a structured evaluation instrument. The students' responses to the questionnaire were favorable and show the approval of the mobile technologies in field. The SUS score (usability) of 83.4 was obtained for the mobile application tested and 88% of the students stated that a solution made it possible to perform field learning tasks more efficiently. In addition, the positive evaluation of the teacher participating in the study and the finding of effective use of the mobile application by all students indicate that mobile technologies have the potential to become important tools in support of field trips of geology.
Highlights
Field trips favor learning by improving student observation, discovery, and communication skills, increased understanding of content and expansion of learning possibilities through real experiences
The SUS score of 83.4 was obtained for the mobile application tested and 88% of the students stated that a solution made it possible to perform field learning tasks more efficiently
The positive evaluation of the teacher participating in the study and the finding of effective use of the mobile application by all students indicate that mobile technologies have the potential to become important tools in support of field trips of geology
Summary
Segundo Figueiredo e Afonso (2006), o futuro da aprendizagem não se encontra apenas nos conteúdos, mas principalmente nos contextos em que o aprendiz se encontra, levando-se em conta as interações e as atividades envolvidas. Tomando-se como exemplo uma aula de campo de Geologia e seguindo a abordagem de Figueiredo e Afonso (2006), têm-se os seguintes elementos nesse contexto de aprendizagem: a aula de campo em si como o Evento de Aprendizagem, onde os alunos se deslocam para um ambiente fora da Universidade com o objetivo de adquirir determinados conhecimentos específicos sobre uma região; as explicações do professor e o material de apoio levado pelos alunos, como o Conteúdo; e, as características geológicas da região visitada no momento da aula, como o Contexto. Através desse exemplo é possível identificar os quatro contextos propostos por Duchastel e Molz (2005): as experiências dos alunos com aulas de campo (Contexto da Experiência); a comunicação entre os estudantes que participam daquela aula (Contexto da Comunidade); os procedimentos padrões adotados pela Universidade que conduz a aula de campo (Contexto da Instituição); e, as informações repassadas pelo professor e o material utilizado pelos alunos em campo (Contexto da Informação)
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