Jul
10

Phones teach written literacy

Print This Post Print This Post -

Necessity can be the mother of learning literacy — or at least of mastering key words. In a Washington Post article here about the huge and growing impact of cell phones in Congo, this passage may be the most important:

Iyombe said text messaging has been slowed by widespread illiteracy but has started taking off in recent months as people learn key words to text, such as “Call me.” He said it is becoming more popular largely because a text message costs five cents, compared with 26 cents for a one-minute voice call. When his mother wants to talk to him, he said, she sends a text telling him to call.

“It was a little difficult getting her to use texts, but now she’s very good at it,” he said, smiling at the thought.

Do we demean this mother in a remote Congo location by thinking she will only learn perhaps a few more keywords she needs for the phone? Or do we realize that by putting a cell phone with a keypad into her hands we have given her a tool for practicing and rewarding literacy itself? Perhaps not every Congolese (and/or the other billion+ people in developing countries who now have phones) will become literate by using them. For sure some will.

Suggestion: incorporate language practice applications into the phones. This is a stunning new way to reach remotely located people with literacy lessons! Let’s do it.


Filed under Mobile Learning on July 10, 2006 -

7 Responses to “Phones teach written literacy”



Trackbacks & Pingbacks

  1. » Pingback by Honorarium on Tuesday » Spam: the secret to world literacy

Your Comments
  1. David Beers Says:
    July 15th, 2006 at 11:44 am

    I was fascinated by this article and blogged about it myself this week. (http://www.pikesoft.com/blog/index.php?itemid=93 — I probably should have made that my entry for the Carnival instead of something about an obscure new Java standard!) I like the way you are thinking about this: what are ways that developers could tweak the widely deployed mobile phone technology to do really important things like improving literacy, health, and economic opportunity in Africa and the rest of the developing world? It’s an exciting challenge that has been overlooked despite the astounding growth of mobile phones in Africa over the last few years.

  2. David Beers Says:
    July 15th, 2006 at 11:55 am

    By the way, your web site looks very interesting. On the face of it your idea about mobile phones as learning tools is really intriguing.

  3. Judy Breck Says:
    July 15th, 2006 at 12:42 pm

    The mobile phones are changing developing countries in what I think is only a beginning of a fundamental and wonderful new empowerment of individuals. Closest to my heart is that this empowerment can be for kids for learning. Much more is coming from GoldenSwamp about that soon.

  4. David Beers Says:
    July 15th, 2006 at 2:46 pm

    Blogged about your post here. You’ve inspired me! :-)

  5. Jim @ Mobile Phones Says:
    April 2nd, 2007 at 3:52 am

    mobile phones really are changing developing countries I was truely fascinated by this article.

    Jim

  6. Yahoo software update Says:
    August 23rd, 2007 at 6:51 am

    Nice to hear that mobile phones prompt progress not only as electronic devices but as literacy teachers. that is the best and most useful impact of phones i have ever hear about!

Leave Your Comment