Sensing the Schoolyard: Using Senses and Sensors to
Assess Georeferenced Environmental Dimensions
Maria João Silva
Escola Superior de Educação
Instituto Politécnico do Porto
Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, 4200 Porto, Portugal
+351225073480
mjosilva@ese.ipp.pt
Pedro Moreira da Silva
INESC Porto & Faculdade de Engenharia
Universidade do Porto
Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, s/n, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal
pedro.da.silva@fe.up.pt
ABSTRACT
This paper presents the Usense2learn platform, a platform
designed and implemented to enable children and teachers to use
georeferenced multisensory information together with information
acquired by sensors. Usense2learn places the creation of content
in the hands of children. While using Usense2learn, mobile
sensors can be held across the exploration area and provide
georeferenced environmental information such as air temperature
and humidity. Using multimedia (video, image, sound and text)
teachers and children can bring the outside world into their
classroom and share it with other classrooms across the globe.
Having the limited schools’ budgets in mind, content creation can
be made anywhere without communication costs. Internet
connection is only required, together with Google Earth, for
visualization. The Usense2learn platform was successfully used in
a curricular context, engaging children and teachers in meaningful
environmental education activities.
Categories and Subject Descriptors
H.5.2: [Information Systems]: Information Interfaces and
Presentation – User Interfaces
K.3.1: Computers and Education: Computer Uses in Education.
General Terms
Design, Experimentation, Human Factors.
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COM.Geo 2010, June 21-23, 2010 Washington, DC, USA
Copyright 2010 ACM 978-1-4503-0031-5...$10.00.
João Correia Lopes
INESC Porto & Faculdade de Engenharia
Universidade do Porto
Rua Dr. Roberto Frias, s/n, 4200-465, Porto, Portugal
jlopes@fe.up.pt
Maria José Marcelino
Centro de Informática e Sistemas da
Universidade de Coimbra, Pólo II,
Pinhal de Marrocos, 3030-290 Coimbra
Portugal
+351239790067
zemar@dei.uc.pt
Keywords
Multisensory georeferenced information; mobile learning;
wireless sensor networks; children.
1. INTRODUCTION
Human senses are our prime interface with the environment and
sensory organs can be considered biological sensors [1].
Furthermore, sensors are typically used as an extension of human
senses and nowadays electronic sensors are becoming everyday
devices in diverse activities and situations [1]. However, sensing
the multiple dimensions of the environment to monitor its quality
is a complex task for children and even for adults [2]. It requires
the situated interpretation of the qualitative and/or quantitative
data collected including its translation to environmental quality
indicators [2].
In these circumstances, the research presented in this paper uses
Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), such as
multimedia tools and virtual globes, to scaffold children in
recording, representing and interpreting multisensory
environmental data [3]. This paper presents tools and activities
that give multisensory information a context, defining where,
when and why multisensory approaches are developed.
In the following section some of the more meaningful projects in
the area are overviewed. Afterwards the USense2Learn platform
is presented. Subsequently, the curricular activities developed to
assess the affordances of the developed platform are described.
Finally, the conclusions are presented and future work is outlined.
2. RELATED WORK
In the past decade, mobile devices have been used in diverse
educational projects to explore spatial and sensory information in
the real world. In the Ambient Wood project, children used
pervasive devices and multimodal displays — including probes,
sensors and GPS —to find things out, to discover habitats, and
biological processes in a woodland [4]. In the Savannah project,
GPS equipped PDAs allowed children to play the role of lions.
Children could “see, hear, and smell” a virtual savannah to deeper
explore lion behavior [5].
“Sound Scavenging” is a project focused on soundscapes creation.
In a series of workshops children explored “how they listen, (…)
and how to map and link the sounds geographically” [6]. After the
workshops the students’ sounds and pictures were mapped using
the free Google Earth (GE) application [6].
In the SchoolSenses@Internet project elementary school children
used mobile phones to create georeferenced multisensory
messages [7] [8]. Those messages were produced as MMS
messages that were automatically displayed in GE which was
embedded in the project collaborative Website [7] [8]. GE’s
interface was a fundamental engaging factor in these experiences
[3].
The analyses of how the GPS-equipped mobile phones and GE
were used to explore, create, and share multisensory geographic
information showed that children: linked cognitive, emotional,
and physical experiences; explored and analyzed environmental
elements; represented new dimensions of the environment and
showed improved awareness of everyday things [7].
3. THE USENSE2LEARN PLATFORM
The USense2Learn platform was developed to allow students to
create in situ multisensory georeferenced content (image, video,
sound and text). The platform (see Figure 1) requires at least one
sensor (Temperature and Humidity, in the present case – Temp,
Hum), one netbook (or a mobile device with similar
characteristics) and one mobile phone for content creation [9]. All
devices must have a GPS receiver for data georeferencing and a
WLAN module for Wi-fi communication. Several netbooks can
be used to increase battery life. Each netbook runs one or more
services.
Figure 1: Usense2learn Platform. (BW – Web Browser; GE –
Google Earth; DHCP - Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol
Server; Temp – Temperature Sensor; Hum – Humidity
Sensor; DB – Data Base)
The network (Net) has two operating modes – ad-hoc and
infrastructured. A custom made DHCP (Dynamic Host
Configuration Protocol) server automatically configures IP
addresses in ad-hoc mode and optionally in infrastructured mode.
An ad-hoc network is created only when no infrastructured
network is available, because of its poorer performance and
higher power consumption.
Activities can take place in the absence of Internet connectivity.
Moreover, the platform can be used on a field trip since every
component must be mobile and portable. Once there is no place to
plug in each component in the field, the platform must work for at
least for 120 minutes – accounting for setup time, class duration
and a considerable safety margin.
Visualization of created information via Web Browser (BW) or
Google Earth (GE) in both modes (ad-hoc or infrastructured)
requires an Internet connection to download satellite images (the
local experience's content can be provided by the local network)
[9]. If a school network is used, it is very likely that it will also
provide Internet access. If an ad-hoc network is used, however,
the other nodes will only have Internet connection if an Internet
gateway is configured.
Bearing the diversity of nodes in mind, each functionality (or set
of functionalities) is provided as a service – implemented as
RESTfull Web Services. Compared with solutions based on
binary protocols the creation of Web Services clearly
distinguishes between interface and implementation. Furthermore,
the use of Web Services provides programming language,
platform and operating system independence [9]. Since
communication at a lower level is made using sockets, Web
Services can be deployed on separate machines – ideal for
increasing processing power (at the cost of adding more devices).
The server node is where all information converges and collects
all the georeferenced multisensory information. It stores it in a
database and makes it available to other nodes. The database –
PostGIS – provides geographic functions crucial for data querying
based on node location [9]. Without this functionality it would not
be feasible, as collected data increases, to query for the nearest
sensor information (time and spatial distance).
The values provided by the sensors are automatically made
available to the students. Sensors may change their positions,
because the data sent to the Web Service is georeferenced. Since
sensors from different manufacturers can be used, all data is sent
in the format specified by the Web Service.
3.1 Content Production
A Web-based application was created with the goal of having a
uniform and easily upgradeable interface across the diverse
devices. Mobile devices that support GPS and WLAN will
probably support browser installation or incorporate a good
browser. Web page access restrictions mean that taking
photographs, recording sound and video, are tasks that are not
integrated into the Web page. Nevertheless, the solution was
designed with the future in mind, since major players are starting
to support Web access to such recording devices [9]: Nokia Web
Runtime (WRT), Palm WebOS, MotorolaWebUI, W3C
MobileWeb Initiative (MWI) and, at an embryonic stage, OMTP
BONDI.
This way, changing the interface is as simple as changing the
Web page. Using AJAX technology, information about the
environment is shown to the user to provide additional
dynamically updated data that s/he can use for content creation.
Also, because all devices are using the same page, no conflicts
will arise from using different versions. Moreover, only one
Website needs to be created, although it is true that the style must
adapt to screen size (which can vary) [9].
3.2 Content Visualization interface (see figure 2), children needed to rename and select the
Once all the information is collected it must be provided in such a created files [9]. Some children showed that they were not
way that it can be easily observed by children. The multisensory comfortable with this task, especially when there were a lot of
information created is exported as a package for each developed files in the directory. But they determinedly overcame this
activity for offline exploration. A KML (Keyhole Markup obstacle as well as other hardware constraints, such as the time
Language) file is generated and the content created by the needed to hold down the button for taking photos or recording
children (image, video, sound and text) is included in the package. video.
Sight and hearing are easily reproduced using current technology,
but the other senses are not. Text is provided to allow the
introduction of additional multisensory information. All media
files (except images) are converted to mp3 (audio) and Flash
video [9]. Text is placed inside the KML file but the other media
are made available as media files. The audio and video players are
also included into the package.
In order to avoid GE limitations and Flash Security issues, a
simple custom-made HTTP server is provided in the package – if
HTTP requests are used none of the issues caused by local files
access will arise. The HTTP server was built using Ruby to
provide a platform-independent solution.
Figure 2: Mobile Web horizontal interface.
4. SENSING THE SCHOOLYARD WITH
CHILDREN The produced messages showed “play niches” of the schoolyard –
To evaluate the Usense2learn platform experiences were designed such as places for running, for playing basketball, “human chess”
to have children producing content in outdoor activities and later – as well as facilities and problems related to solid waste.
visualizing it in the classroom. The developed experiences
The activities took place on two summer mornings and the
involved 25 children (13 boys and 12 girls), aged 10 to 11, from a
temperature rose as time passed. Both temperature and humidity
classroom of an elementary school of the city of Porto, Portugal. 3
showed very different values in places such as near the trees or
curricular activities were implemented in 3 classes of 90 minutes,
the building, on the basketball court or on the running track. The
held on 3 days, to assess the affordances of the developed
teachers supported children in verbally expressing what they were
platform. During the outdoor activities children worked in 8
sensing both with their senses and with the sensors in order to
groups, 7 groups of 3 and 1 group of 4 children.
enable them to relate abstract ideas to concrete data.
The Senses@School game was the strategy adopted to structure
the children’s activities [7]. The challenge presented to the
children was an open-ended task: to share multisensory
information about their schoolyard with other schools.
In the activities, an HTC TyTN II mobile phone (which has an
integrated keyboard), two laptops for children, based on the Intel
Classmate PC, and one sensor for air temperature and humidity
measurement (PASCO PASport PS-2124A) were used. To
overcome the lack of GPS, the sensor geoposition was acquired
through synchronization with the mobile phone.
Before going out to the schoolyard, children observed, using GE,
and commented on the georeferenced multisensory information
created by children in two other schoolyards [7]. In this
experience children could not only produce georeferenced
multisensory information, but also enrich such information using
sensors and producing videos while exploring their schoolyard.
The 4 groups of children that worked on the first day observed
and commented on the temperature and humidity data acquired at
several points in their schoolyard by the portable sensors and
produced georeferenced multisensory messages with a video, a Figure 3: Content exhibition in Google Earth (text message:
photo, a sound and a small text [9]. On the second day the 25 Running is healthy when it is not hot".)
children observed the first day messages. Afterwards, the other 4
groups of children produced their messages [9]. On the second day, since the temperature and humidity data were
Children used the mobile phone and the sensors in an engaged being updated on the mobile screen during the activity, children
way to explore the schoolyard. Since multimedia recording were explicitly asked to relate their messages to these data. Using
(image, sound and video) was not integrated into the Web this information, one of the groups wrote the following text:
“When we are under the shade of the trees, it gets cooler" [9].
Another group wrote that “running is healthy, when it is not hot”
(see figure 3).
A third session was implemented three weeks later. In this
session, children used GE to observe, analyse and discuss all the
produced messages (see figure 4). One member of the research
team and the class teacher discussed with children the temperature
and humidity data recorded in the georeferenced multisensory
messages, relating the data to when and where the messages were
produced. The children revisited the sensations experienced
during the development of each message and related them to the
sensors’ values.
Figure 4: Google Earth – Content navigation.
Afterwards, during this session, children were asked to give some
reasons that could influence other schools to develop similar
activities. 18 children (6 boys and 12 girls) mentioned the sensing
of temperature and humidity, 12 children (7 boys and 5 girls)
mentioned that the activities were fun, 11 children (5 boys and 6
girls) pointed out that technology and media are reasons to value
the activities and 4 children (3 boys and 1 girl) said that the
activities were important to improve learning.
5. CONCLUSION
The Usense2learn platform was designed, developed and used in
order to make it possible for children and teachers, using location
aware mobile devices, to create and visualize georeferenced
information acquired by sensors and human senses. The
Usense2learn platform was successfully used in a curricular
context, engaging children and teachers in meaningful
environmental education activities.
The Usense2learn platform showed potential as a scaffolding tool
for the analysis of environmental information, since it allowed
children together with their teachers to explore, create,
communicate and reflect on qualitative and quantitative, objective
and subjective environmental information in their everyday
context. The ICT tools used were found to be engaging for
children and to allow (re)visiting sensory experiences in more
formal and abstract contexts.
Future work will allow the exploration and social edition (e.g., "I
like this", "I don't like this" and small text annotations) of the
quantitative and qualitative georeferenced information. In order to
make this possible, the USense2Learn platform will include: an
ontology that will support content exploration based on
geospatial, temporal and conceptual criteria; and a database for
storing the sensor data, the multisensory content and the
annotations produced by the children. This enhanced
USense2Learn platform will be used in schools of diverse regions
of Portugal to assess the environmental quality of each schoolyard
and to support the creation and use of context aware interactive
objects. These objects will be created to improve the schools’
sustainability, whilst also contributing to scaffold the learning of
environmental complexity using a tangible experimentation
approach.
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