Development of a Mobile-Learning Environment to Foster Science Communication about the Moon

According to the results of previous research, it was inferred that on-going conversations about scientific phenomena such as the changing phases of the moon would enhance prospective teachers' scientific knowledge and knowledge about the nature of science. However, some thought that it would be hard to keep observing the moon outside of classes and that they couldn't do this, even though they realized that observations of the moon Would be useful for learning about the moon. The authors developed a mobile moon observation system to facilitate the prospective teachers' ability to continue observation of the moon and a PC system to share observations. Based on the prospective teachers' answers and descriptions, they thought that the mobile system was useful and convenient. In addition, many chose the mobile & PC system rather than paper sheets as an observation tool & a data sharing tool. The more prospective teachers observed the moon, the more they could demonstrate understanding the moon's phases.