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An investigation‐based learning model for using digital libraries to
support mobile learning activities
Article    in  The Electr onic Libr ary · August 2011
DOI: 10.1108/02640471111156759  · Sour ce: DBLP
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Ju-Ling Shih
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National T aiwan Univ ersity of Scienc e and T echnolog y
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An investigation-based learning
model for using digital libraries to
support mobile learning activities
Ju-Ling Shih, Gwo-Jen Hwang, Yu-Chung Chu and
Chien-Wen Chuang
Department of Information and Learning Technology,
National University of Tainan, Tainan, Taiwan
Abstract
Purpose – This study proposes a mobile learning model that employs digital libraries to support
investigative learning activities. A student-centered mobile learning activity with self-guided
exploration for physical ecology observation has been conducted to demonstrate the benefits of usingdigital libraries to support investigation-based ecology learning activities.
Design/methodology/approach – An investigation-based mobile learning model is proposed and
an experiment is designed to show the effectiveness of the learning model, in which the students are
asked to answer a series of questions by observing the real-world learning objects and searching forsupplemental materials from a digital library.
Findings – The instructional experiment conducted in an elementary school with 64 sixth grade
students shows that the innovative approach is able to improve the learning achievement, learning
effectiveness, as well as the learning attitudes of the students.
Practical implications – The findings of this paper imply that the use of the investigative learning
model will significantly promote the utilization rate of digital libraries.Originality/value – An investigative model for using digital libraries to support mobile learning is
proposed in this paper. It provides good guidance to teachers for designing learning activities with
digital libraries, and a good way for students to learn, utilizing the materials in digital libraries.
Keywords Digital libraries, Learning, Investigation-based learning, Mobile learning,
Instructional strategies
Paper type Research paper
1. Background and motivation
The fast advance of computer and communication technologies has changed the ways
of providing services in libraries and learning in schools. The development of new
digital library technologies to support educational purposes has been recognized as animportant issue by researchers (Uzoka and Ijatuyi, 2005; Saeed, 2006). In the meantime,
with such rich digital resources in digital libraries, scholars and educators are
searching for efficient and reliable methods to properly use materials that can help
them meet the needs of instruction, assessment, and professional development. In an
increasingly complex technology-based world, there are demands for corresponding
instructional strategies and learning activities to enhance educational value (Chu et al.,
2008).The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available at
www.emeraldinsight.com/0264-0473.htm
This research was supported by the National Science Council in Taiwan under projects NSC
97-2511-S-024 -009-MY2 NSC 98-2511-S-024-006-MY2 and NSC 98-2631-S-024-001.EL
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Received December 2009
Accepted January 2010
The Electronic Library
Vol. 29 No. 4, 2011pp. 488-505qEmerald Group Publishing Limited
0264-0473DOI 10.1108/02640471111156759

Furthermore, with the aid of mobile and wireless technology, educational practice
can be embedded into mobile life with wireless communication. Consequently, mobile
or ubiquitous learning, which can be conducted outdoors or indoors with support from
the Internet, has become a widely discussed issue (Chen et al. , 2003; Homan and Wood,
2003; Rogers et al. , 2005; Hwang et al., 2008; Hwang et al. , 2009). In recent years, mobile
learning has increasingly attracted the interest of educators, researchers, and
companies that develop learning systems and publish instructional materials (Huseyinet al. , 2009). Mobile technologies fulfill educational dreams by providing the possibility
of creating innovative learning experiences that can take place in a variety of outdoorsettings (for example, parks, city centers, woodlands) (Chu et al. , 2010; Hwang et al.,
2010) and in indoor settings (for example, museums, learning centers, labs, the home)(Rogers et al., 2005). The use of portable technologies makes it easier for learners to
study when and where they want by making it simple for them to transport their
learning materials. It also facilitates just-in-time learning in that learners can take
advantage of unexpected free time since they frequently have their devices with them(Chris, 2008).
One of the major difficulties of applying digital libraries to instruction and learning
is the lack of an effective model for teachers and students to follow (Chu et al. , 2008).
Without any guidance for the teachers, digital libraries are seldom considered as partof the learning resources when designing learning activities. Therefore, it has becomean important but challenging issue to develop a learning model that guides the
teachers to properly include digital libraries as an important element for developing an
effective learning activity.
In this study, a mobile learning model is proposed for teachers to utilize digital
libraries to support investigative learning activities. A student-centered mobilelearning activity with self-guided exploration for physical ecology observation hasbeen conducted to demonstrate the benefits of using digital libraries to support
investigation-based ecology learning activities.
2. Literature review
Information is a basic human need, and civilization advances when people are able toapply the right information at the right time (Edward and Marchionini, 1998). Digital
libraries combine technology and information resources to allow remote access,
breaking down the physical barriers between resources (Marchionini and Maurer,
1995). With digital libraries, learners can actively use different resources to study a
subject and to solve meaningful problems (Anohina, 2005). On the other hand, teachersand learners are required to manage the large amount of information and to select
those resources that satisfy their curiosity or learning needs; therefore, it is imperative
for digital libraries and tools to provide an easy-to-use and efficient user interface, tohave demonstrable value, and to fit into existing contexts, while not adding
complications to the already busy lives and heavy workload of teachers and learners
(Swaim and Swaim, 1999).
Resource-based learning can be illustrated as a learning model in which students
learn from their own interaction with a wide range of information resources rather thanfrom conventional class exposition (Rakes, 1996). There has been an emphasis on
students’ learning to be self-regulated from the interaction with a wide range of
learning resources (Neumann et al., 2005; Rakes, 1996). It has motivated theAn investigation-
based learning
model
489

transformation of the conventional knowledge-transmission teaching approach into a
learner-centered knowledge constructi on paradigm. Resource-based learning
implicates examining a topic and locating the information to answer questions or to
solve problems related to this topic (Rakes, 1996).
Resources incorporated into planned, authentic tasks afford students opportunities
to develop the skills and techniques necessary to become autonomous, self-directedlearners and effective users of information (Doiron and Davies, 1998; Atlantic
Provinces Education Foundation, n.d.). The teachers in the study of Recker et al. (2004)
felt that easy access to large numbers of high-quality learning resources increases their
productivity by saving them time, improves their practice, and better meets the
academic needs of their students. The teachers also believed that the process of
accessing learning resources increased their own and their students’ level of
technological literacy. The study participants also believed that the use of digital
resources improves the quality of their teaching and their students’ learning. That is, adigital library is a high-efficacy information indexing and searching service. It offers
new levels of access to broader audiences of users, and new opportunities for global
exchange and understanding (Edward and Marchionini, 1998).
In the past decade, many institutes have put their efforts into the development of
teaching websites and digital libraries to collect precious learning materials andknowledge, many researchers have put emphasis on creating and digitizing resources(e.g. Ide et al. , 2005; Kim et al., 2004; Ogawa, 2000), while many others (e.g. Blandford
et al. , 2007; Sreekumar and Sunitha, 2005) have focused on system development and
maintenance. There are also scholars (e.g. Gonc ¸alves et al. , 2007) who have tried to
elaborate on the meaning of quality in digital libraries (DLs) by proposing a model thatis deeply grounded in a formal framework for digital libraries: 5S (streams, structures,spaces, scenarios, and societies). More technologists are inviting content providers to
digitize texts and build digital libraries to store digital information.
Meanwhile, efforts have also culminated in the development of a digital library with
accessible on-line services, for example, CNIB has strived to find innovative solutionsto provide to the blind and vision-impaired community better access to literary
materials and information through the application of new information technology(Jarry et al., 2005). Moreover, further research developments and applications
combining mobile learning can be found in recent years (e.g. Chu et al., 2008).
Building a digital library with correct and meaningful resources for students to
retrieve information in the field is one of the methods of enriching student learning.Mobile devices can facilitate human interaction and access to knowledge resourcesanytime and anywhere (Liaw et al., 2010). The impact of using mobile communication
technologies in learning environments has been examined empirically by severalstudies, which have concluded that they enhance the availability and accessibility ofinformation networks, helping students in learning-related activities in diverse
physical locations (Liu et al. , 2002; Hwang et al., 2010). Mobile devices are becoming
popular tools for enhancing productivity because they improve the accessibility of
real-time data and information in the workplace (Kwok et al., 2008). The popularity of
mobile devices has encouraged researchers to investigate the effectiveness of mobilelearning. Examples such as bird-watching (Chen et al., 2003) or museum learning
(Burgard et al., 2001) are informal learning situations which are sustained by the
combination of powerful functions and high portability. Formal learning situations, onEL
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the other hand, are widely used in different fields around the world including natural
science (Lai et al. , 2007; Hwang et al., 2009), social science (Fischer and Konomi, 2007),
math (Zurita and Nussbaum, 2004) and languages (Cui and Bull, 2005), just to list afew, and have gained positive results.
Therefore, since students who actively query resources will build a better model of
the topic than those who passively receive information (Jonasson et al., 1993), it is our
aim to create an environment for students to utilize digital libraries as they conductfield investigations in a butterfly ecology garden. They are offered opportunities topractice information literacy skills and critical-thinking skills in the learning process.Mobile devices are used to facilitate the learning activity and bring digital libraries to
its ultimate use.
3. Research method
Educators have indicated that the most feasible learning activity of natural science isoutdoor inquiry, which takes science investigation outside the classroom (Chen et al.,
2005). In this study, an investigative model for using digital libraries to support mobile
learning is proposed. The authentic learning environment is a butterfly ecology garden
of an elementary school in southern Taiwan.
To demonstrate the effectiveness of this model, we chose 64 sixth grade students to
participate in a learning activity for an ecology course. A set of pre- and post-tests have
been conducted to understand the learning achievements of the students. Also, a set of
pre- and post-course questionnaires are used to understand the students’ improvementin their cognitive, affective, and psychomotor skill aspects, respectively. Finally, asystem usability evaluation is conducted at the end of the post-course questionnaire tounderstand students’ perspectives of the digital library for mobile learning. The
questionnaires are designed with six-point Likert scales anchored between “strongly
disagree” and “strongly agree”. The higher the score means, the higher the users’expectations and acceptance of the u-learning system.
3.1 Development of an Investigation-based learning environment
In this study, a digital library with dual access modes is developed to supportinvestigation-based mobile learning. That is, both the PC display mode and the PDA
display mode are provided to facilitate data displayed on big screen and small screen,
as shown in Figure 1. In addition, the search results from the digital library arepresented on the HTML websites to create low-technology access to the database.
The students in this research use the PDA version for investigation-based mobile
learning. Three different methods are provided for searching for the materials in thedigital library; that is, keyword search (Figure 2), index photos (Figure 3), and menusearch (Figure 4). Most students use index photo search when they are conducting fieldobservations in the butterfly ecology garden since they can identify the butterflies by
their appearance. However, when the students are making conceptual connections
between butterflies and their related plants, they use keyword or menu search becauseit is faster for them to find relevant resources by the names they have already learnedin the earlier learning stage.
The learning activities are designed to guide the students to investigate the
real-world environment (e.g. the butterfly ecology garden) and complete their missionsvia searching for supplemental materials from the digital library, as shown in Figure 5.An investigation-
based learning
model
491

Figure 1.
PC and PDA versions ofthe dynamic websitedesign
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The students go through a four-step “LILI” learning cycle and conduct investigation
alternating between field observation and the digital library. Each of the four steps hasone main question to guide student learning:
(1)Look. What butterflies and plants do you see in your surroundings? Students
have to look for butterflies and plants in person in the butterfly ecology garden.
(2)Identify. What are the names of the butterflies and plants? Since the students
might not know the names of the butterflies and plants, they have to identify
them by looking into the digital library.
(3)Link. What are the relationships between the butterflies and the plants? Then,
from the digital library, the students can read about what plants different kinds
of butterflies consume. Thus, they find the relationships between the butterfliesand the plants, and build links between them.
(4)Inquire. What else can you find from the resources? In order to encourage
students to search more into the digital library, they have to look for more related
plant to butterfly information and vice versa for extensive reading and inquiry.
The resources in the digital library include the detailed data of thousands of butterflies,
birds, crabs, plants and other creatures in southern Taiwan. Taking butterfly materialsas an example, in addition to the basic data (e.g. name, subject, color, appearance,
habitual behaviors, and distribution) of the butterflies, the relationships between
butterflies and plants are also recorded, as shown in Figure 6. Those data are veryFigure 2.
Keyword search
An investigation-
based learning
model
493

important references for the students when they are participating in the field
observation activities.
3.2 Experiment procedure
To evaluate the performance of the proposed approach, five major steps are carried out
throughout the learning process. In the beginning of the activity, a pre-test isconducted to identify students’ existing knowledge about butterfly ecology and a brief
course orientation is given to the students. Then the teacher helps the students to
determine the unit goal for the learning activities so that they clearly understand what
they have to do during the process of learning. Next, the students are paired up and are
led to the field investigation which takes the longest time and the biggest effort.
In the butterfly ecology garden, the students need to observe the butterflies and
plants using their handheld devices with access to the digital mobile library, and theyhave to write down the names of the butterflies and plants they found on their learningwrite down. When they return to the classroom, they complete the learning sheet,
which requires them to make concept connections between the butterflies and the
plants they found both in the field and in the digital library. Finally, a post-test is
conducted to evaluate the learning effectiveness of the activity.
The students use the learning sheet in two stages. In the first stage (Plate 1), they go
to the butterfly ecology garden and find at least five kinds of butterflies and five kindsof plants. In the second stage (Plate 2), they return to the classroom and complete the
learning sheets. They first use the digital library to find the relationships between theFigure 3.
Index photos
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Figure 4.
Menu search
Figure 5.
Process of conducting
investigation-based
mobile learning activities
with the digital library
An investigation-
based learning
model
495

Figure 6.
Conceptual relationshipsof butterflies and plants
Plate 1.First learning stage:students in the butterflyecology garden
Plate 2.Second learning stage:students in the classroom
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ten items of butterflies and plants they saw in the field. The plants can be butterfly
nectar plants or larval food plants. Then, they are to find other plants and butterflies
that are related to the previous ten items. The correct items and connections are
counted as part of their learning achievement.
4. Research findings
4.1 Learning achievement
Before and after the learning activity, we asked the students to write down all thebutterflies they already know of. It is found that the students made significantimprovements. Before participating in the learning activity, the students could writedown 4.17 kinds of butterflies on average, while after the activity, they could write
down 6.61 kinds of butterflies on average. That is, the students could identify 2.44
more kinds of butterflies from the learning activity.
In addition, on the students’ learning sheets, they are required to write down five
kinds of butterflies and five kinds of plants they observed in the field, and then extend
the inquiry by using the digital library and writing down another five kinds of
butterflies and five kinds of plants. The correct number of items students found arelisted in Table I. We can see that they could correctly identify 4.34 kinds of butterfliesand 4.50 kinds of plants that they observed in the field. Those that were found in the
digital library included 1.97 kinds of butterflies, and 3.59 kinds of plants. That is, the
digital library provided useful information to the students for identifying 45 per cent ofthe butterflies and 80 per cent of the plants.
Figure 7 is the learning sheet of a pair of students who are of higher-learning
achievement. They not only correctly identified the butterflies and plants in the field,but also frequently and accurately found the relevant plants and butterflies in thedigital libraries. They correctly identified ten kinds of butterflies and ten kinds ofplants with 29 conceptual links between those items.
On the other hand, Figure 8 shows the learning sheet of a pair of students who are of
lower-learning achievement and who seldom accessed the digital library. Althoughthey could correctly identify some of the butterflies and plants in the field, they wereless able to find the conceptual links between them. In this example, only six kinds of
butterflies, seven kinds of plants and eight conceptual links were correctly identified.
Therefore, it can be seen that the ability to use the digital library during the learningprocess does affect the learning results of those students, in particular, for observingand identifying a set of learning objects in the field.
Furthermore, to evaluate the students’ learning achievement in terms of butterflies,
we conducted pre- and post-tests about butterflies and the related nectar plants andlarval food plants. The findings of the study were validated by statistical analysis. Asshown in Table II, the average pre-test and post-test scores are 53.14 and 72.34,
respectively; moreover, the t-test result shows that the improvement reached
significant level with t¼210:94 and p,0:001, implying that the students made
significant progress after participating in the mobile learning activity with digital
library investigations.
4.2 Learning effectiveness for three aspects
To evaluate the learning effectiveness for the aspects of cognition, affectiveness and
psychomotor skills, pre- and post-course questionnaires were conducted and theAn investigation-
based learning
model
497

None One kind Two kinds Three kinds Four kinds Five kinds
Learning items Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Number % Average
Butterflies identified in the field 0 0.00 0 0.00 1 3.13 3 9.38 12 37.50 16 50.00 4.34
Plants identified in the field 0 0.00 0 0.00 0 0.00 4 12.50 8 25.00 20 62.50 4.50
Butterflies identified in the digital library 11 34.38 3 9.38 6 18.75 4 12.50 4 12.50 4 12.50 1.97
Plants identified in the digital library 4 12.50 0 0.00 3 9.38 6 18.75 4 12.50 15 46.88 3.59Table I.Correct learning items
identified by students
from both the fieldobservation and digitalmobile libraryEL
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Figure 7.
Learning sheet of a pair of
students with higher
learning achievement
Figure 8.
Learning sheet of a pair of
students with lower
learning achievement
Mean n SD t
Pre-test score 53.14 64 17.31 210.94*
Post-test score 72.34 64 17.55
Note:*p,0:001Table II.
t-test results of the pre-
and post-testsAn investigation-
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499

feedback from the students was compared based on the three aspects. Table III shows
the statistical results of the ratings concerning the cognition aspect. The means of thepre-course and the post-course questionnaire ratings are 3.83 and 4.67, respectively;
moreover, the t-test result shows significant improvement with p,0:001, implying
that the students apparently have more confidence in taking the course after
experiencing this mobile learning activity.
This shows that as a result of the investigation-based learning activity using the
digital mobile library, the students feel they are able to distinguish the different kindsof butterflies, nectar plants, and larval food plants in their school. Meanwhile, they are
more confident about understanding the growth and distribution of the butterfly nectar
plants and larval food plants in their school.
Moreover, the averages of the affective aspect (Table IV) of the pre-course
questionnaire (mean ¼4:36) and the post-course questionnaire (mean ¼4:70) show a
significant increase ( p,0:001), implying that the students had overall affective
improvement in this mobile learning activity.
The results show that through the investigation-based learning activity using the
digital mobile library, the students’ interest and motivation to go to the butterflyecology garden in their schools increased. Due to the activity, they have a basicunderstanding of butterfly ecology, and understand the importance of protecting it.
Finally, the averages of the psychomotor skills aspect (Table V) of the pre-course
questionnaire (mean ¼4:33) and the post-course questionnaire (mean ¼4:95) show
significant increase ( p,0:001), implying that the students have better psychomotor
skills after participating in this mobile learning activity.
This shows that through the investigation-based learning activity using the digital
mobile library, the students participate in butterfly ecology related activities, and can
Mean n SD t
Psychomotor skills aspect pre-course questionnaire 4.33 64 1.20 25.30*
Psychomotor skills aspect post-course questionnaire 4.95 64 1.00
Note:*p,0:001Table V.
t-test results for the
psychomotor skills aspectMean n SD t
Affective aspect pre-course questionnaire 4.36 64 1.02 23.01*
Affective aspect post-course questionnaire 4.70 64 1.00
Note:*p,0:001Table IV.
t-test results for the
affective aspectMean n SD t
Cognitive aspect pre-course questionnaire 3.83 64 1.45 25.54*
Cognitive aspect post-course questionnaire 4.67 64 1.19
Note:*p,0:001Table III.
t-test results for the
cognitive aspectEL
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introduce the kinds of butterflies in their school and butterfly ecology to other people.
After having a satisfactory experience of using mobile devices in their learning, the
students can use computers to conduct data searching, and when they have questions,they can search for information online and in the library.
4.3 Usability evaluation
Table VI shows the usability evaluation results of the digital library. The averageratings of the “system design”, “instructional potential” and “satisfaction” aspects are
5.32, 5.42 and 5.33, respectively. The overall average is 5.36 out of 6 points and the
average of each usability aspect is above 5 in the six-point Likert scale evaluation,implying that the students have very positive views of the use of the digital library in
the investigation-based mobile learning activity.
Among the questionnaire items, the one with the highest score is item 11, “I think it is
interesting to use the digital library for butterfly ecology learning”. This reflects the belief
of the students that the instructional design of using investigative-based learning with adigital mobile library is effective in learning and brings a very satisfying experience to the
students. From the questionnaire, it is found that the students mostly believe that “The
website information is convenient to search”, “The system has accurate information”,“The system has organized information descriptions”, and “The system has fulfilled the
mobile learning instructional goal”. All these items have average scores of 5.44.
On the second tier, students show positive feelings toward this digital library
activity. In item 12, “Using the digital mobile library has let me know more about
Average
I. System Design 5.32
1. The system interface design is appealing 5.28
2. The system interface function is clearly labelled 5.30
3. The system content is structured 5.314. The website information is convenient to search 5.445. The website information is fast to retrieve 5.27
II. Instructional potential 5.42
6. The system has rich content 5.397. The system has accurate information 5.448. The system has organized information descriptions 5.449. The system has high-quality photos 5.38
10. The system has fulfilled the mobile learning instructional goal 5.44
III. Satisfaction 5.33
11. I think it is interesting to use the digital library for butterfly ecology learning 5.45
12. Using the digital mobile library has let me know more about butterfly ecology 5.41
13. Using the digital mobile library to learn made me feel more relaxed 5.39
14. I have learned more using the digital library in the field than listening to lectures in the
classroom 5.31
15. I have more motivation to learn about butterfly ecology using the digital mobile library 5.4116. In the future, I hope I can use the digital mobile library again 5.2017. I would recommend the digital mobile library to peers 5.1718. If I gave the digital mobile library a score from 1-6, I would give it … 5.33
Overall 5.36Table VI.
Usability evaluation
result of the digital
mobile libraryAn investigation-
based learning
model
501

butterfly ecology”, and item 15, “I have more motivation to learn about butterfly
ecology using the digital mobile library”, both rated average scores of 5.41. Thispresents an affirmative attitude toward the butterfly ecology learning activity.
Finally, in terms of the future use and promotion of digital mobile learning, we can
see that the item, “In the future, I hope I can use the digital mobile library again”(average ¼5:20) and “I would recommend the digital mobile library to peers”
(average ¼5:17) both score highly.
5. ConclusionsMobile and ubiquitous learning can provide more opportunities for students to applyexploratory and critical thinking abilities than classroom lectures. Incorporating a digitallibrary in the mobile learning system has proved to enhance the effectiveness ofresource-based learning. Through the combination of physical field research and virtualdigital searching, it can effectively extend students’ learning experiences to outside theclassroom. By giving students access to meaningful and just-in-time resources, they canconstruct their own knowledge and get personal assistance through their mobile devices.
Moreover, it is found that the mobile learning approach can significantly and
effectively increase students’ positive learning attitudes. Especially since, in thisresearch, an investigation-based learning approach is adopted with a digital library asthe resource portal to support students’ learning needs, the students have shown highconfidence in and satisfaction with their learning experiences. Moreover, the students’abilities to observe and identify the learning objects significantly improved, since theyare able to see those learning objects in person along with extended digital information,due to the enhancement of the digital technology, such that their learning experiencesare not confined to the textbook information or abstract descriptions.
To sum up, this study has demonstrated a number of advantages and possible
applications of using a digital library to support investigation-based mobile learning innatural science courses. In the learning scenarios that integrate field and digitallearning, with the application of mobile devices, students’ learning achievement,effectiveness, and motivation can exhibit an overall increase. Therefore, thisinnovative approach has high potential for further implementation in other subjectareas such as the social sciences and language learning, in which the students needsupport from digital libraries while participating in learning activities in real-worldcontexts. It is expected that in future research, we can apply different instructionalstrategies, add in more multimedia interactions, and evaluate the system from differentlearning aspects. It is hoped that this study will prove to be a good reference and aspringboard for further research by future researchers.
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About the authorsJu-Ling Shih is currently an Associate Professor in the Department of Information and LearningTechnology in National University of Tainan, Taiwan. She earned her EdD in Communicationand Education from Teachers College, Columbia University, specializing in distance education
and instructional technology. Her research interests include instructional design and qualitative
research in digital learning, digital games, mobile learning, and technology-mediated educationin various levels and fields.
Gwo-Jen Hwang is currently a Chair Professor in the Graduate Institute of Digital Learning
and Education at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology. In 1991, Dr Hwangreceived his PhD degree in Computer Science and Information Engineering from National ChiaoTung University in Taiwan. His research interests include mobile and ubiquitous learning,computer-assisted testing, expert systems and knowledge engineering. Dr Hwang has published
more than 330 academic papers, including 118 papers in such professional journals as Computers
& Education ,Educational Technology & Society ,British Journal of Educational Technology ,
Innovations in Education and Teaching International , and The Electronic Libraries , among
others. Owing to the good reputation in academic research and innovative inventions of
e-learning, in 2007, he received the annual Most Outstanding Researcher Award from theNational Science Council in Taiwan. Gwo-Jen Hwang is the corresponding author and can becontacted at: gjhwang.academic@gmail.com
Yu-Chung Chu is currently a graduate student in the Department of Information and
Learning Technology at National University of Tainan in Taiwan. Her research interests includemobile and ubiquitous learning, web-based learning, and instructional design.
Chien-Wen Chuang is currently a doctoral student in the Graduate Institute of Digital
Learning and Education at National Taiwan University of Science and Technology. Her researchinterests include mobile and ubiquitous learning, web-based learning tools development, andinstructional designs and applications. The focus domain is in both the natural and the social
science fields, especially in ecology-related subjects and local culture exploration.An investigation-
based learning
model
505
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