1. IADIS International Conference e-Learning 2011
E-LEARNING IN BANGLADESH:
THE ‘TRAINER IN YOUR POCKET’
Christopher S. Walsh
The Open University, United Kingdom
ABSTRACT
While sustainable models of teacher professional development through information communication technologies (ICT) in
developing countries like Bangladesh provide new opportunities for improving teaching and learning, they are largely
unexplored. A variety of models of teacher professional development have been reported on in the research, but little
attention has been paid to large-scale mobile e-Learning models that promote changes in communicative language
teaching practices. This paper examines the ‘trainer in your pocket,’ an e-Learning component of English in Action (EIA),
a project designed to contribute to the growth of Bangladesh by providing English language as a tool for better access to
the world economy. The ‘trainer in your pocket’ works to build the capacity of teachers to achieve pedagogical change at
the classroom level by providing them with strategies to teach English in more participatory and communicative ways on
MP3 players and mobile phones. EIA’s ‘trainer in your pocket’ encourages continuous self and supported learning to
help teachers rethink their pedagogical practices and simultaneously learn English. Teachers receive hundreds of audio
resources for classroom use that provide students unprecedented opportunities to hear and experience high levels of
spoken English directly related to Bangladesh’s national curriculum. The paper argues e-Learning can play a critical role
in development projects alongside face-to-face and ICT-enhanced teacher professional development. Furthermore, it
provides a replicable framework or model for large-scale teacher professional development in emerging economies.
KEYWORDS
Teacher professional development, e-Learning, communicative language teaching, ICT, mobile phones
1. INTRODUCTION
English in Action EIA is a unique international development project led and managed by BMB Mott
McDonald, The Open University (UK) and The British Broadcast Corporation (BBC) World Service Trust.
The project also works collaboratively with local organisations including the Underprivileged Children’s
Educational Programme (UCEP) and Friends in Village Development Bangladesh (FIVDB). Implemented in
2008, EIA is designed to assist 25 million people in Bangladesh improve their English language skills in
three stages over 9 years. The project was originally requested by the government of Bangladesh, and
subsequently funded (£50 million) by the United Kingdom’s Department for International development
(DfID).
English in Action (EIA) aims to raise Bangladesh’s economic and social profile by providing English
language as a tool for the population to access global opportunities utilising multiple entry points in schools
and the mass media. In schools, EIA promotes innovative teaching and learning methods through the use of
audio resources on mobile phones and MP3 players (alongside visual and print resources) closely aligned
with the Government of Bangladesh's primary and secondary national curriculum, textbooks and assessment
procedures. This ICT-enhanced teacher professional development is provided alongside a continuous (12
month) face-to-face programme within a school-based open learning model. The Project also uses television
and mobile telephones to increase access to learning materials for adults primarily through BBC Janalai, a
unique multi-platform project that harnesses multimedia technology (TV, Internet, mobile phones) to provide
affordable education to potentially millions of people in the Bangladeshi-speaking community.
This paper provides a review of research around e-Learning and teacher professional development
(through and with ICT) and the use of short message service (SMS) in teacher education and training. It then
describes EIA’s learning resources (print, audio & visual) that were distributed through a cyclical (12 month)
face-to-face and ICT-enhanced teacher professional development programme. The teacher professional
165

2. ISBN: 978-972-8939-38-0 © 2011 IADIS
development programme was designed to encourage changes in teachers’ pedagogical practices by providing
examples, strategies and training that encourages teachers to adopt communicative language teaching (CLT)
practices over more traditional grammar-based approaches. The paper describes EIA’s self-learning
modules—or the ‘trainer in your pocket’—an innovative use of m-learning for teacher professional
development on MP3 players and low cost mobile phones. The ‘trainer in your pocket’ provides films,
podcasts and SMS messages encouraging teachers to change their pedagogical practices. I argue this form of
e-Learning, that encourages continuous self and supported learning through mobile technologies, helps
teachers rethinking their pedagogical practices; acquire higher levels of English language proficiency and
provides a replicable framework for teacher professional development in developing countries.
2. E-LEARNING AND DEVELOPMENT
The field of e-Learning in relationship to international development is still relatively new and largely
confined to university-based distance learning. Recent studies explore distance learning in the delivery of an
in-service bachelors degree in Africa (Smith, 2010) and Chinese students’ intention to take e-Learning
programmes provided by UK universities (Duan, et al., 2010). An example from Tanzania describes the
development of an e-learning management system (e-LMS) for secondary schools to improve secondary
school education using ICT through several projects (Kalinga et al., 2007). In Bangladesh, Gronlund and
Islam (2010) describe a low-cost, large-scale project working to improve distance education by means of a
university-based student-centred interactive learning environment using video, mobile phones and SMS-
based tools administered through a learning management system. Yet these forms of e-Learning largely rely
on delivery through computers, rather than mobile devices. EIA’s ‘trainer in your pocket’ stands out as both
different and innovative, particularly in terms of how it is not constrained by the need for an internet
connection or access to a computer and by the fact that we are scaling up to use our model on mobile phones
with over 12,000 teachers in Bangladesh.
2.1 ICT and Teacher Professional Development
Many studies internationally clearly articulate that teacher professional development and support is a critical
issue for using ICT in education (Zhang, 2007). ICT in-service teacher training in Cyprus (Karagiorg and
Charalambou, 2006) reported a significant impact of ICT training on teachers’ personal attitudes and skills,
but these did not translate into significant gains in student learning and achievement. Research in Barbados
(Lim, 2007) examined the critical issues involved in the building of teacher capacity for using ICT in
teaching and learning and found teachers needed to have continuous professional development (CPD) if they
were to successfully integrate the use of ICT to improve their teaching alongside simultaneously acquiring
basic ICT literacy skills. A recent small study of 15 head teachers in Sarawak (Onn, 2010) also highlights the
importance and need for CPD to enable teachers to face the challenges brought about by advances in ICT and
ways to make teaching and learning relevant to pupils’ increasingly digitised lifeworlds. Mukama and
Andersson (2007) investigated how newly qualified Rwandan teachers not only desired teacher professional
development with ICT, but also increased access to technology at their own schools to practice, on their own,
many of the ICT based practices they had been exposed to. In a recent large scale study in China on the use
of ICT in English language classes, findings suggest that teachers need additional professional development
to attain basic computer knowledge and proficiency to better understand how to implement Computer
Assisted Language Learning (CALL) pedagogy with their students (Li and Walsh, 2010). These studies
indicate that locally contextualised and continuous models of teacher professional development are needed to
improve teachers’ capacity with ICT in ways that advance their own ICT skills and student learning across
subject areas.
Relevant to EIA is Power and Thomas’ (2007) research that focused on the potential of handheld
computers or pocket personal computers (PC) for teacher professional development over laptops and
desktops. Their study found that the pocket PC was the principal tool for supporting teacher professional
development and practice, particularly in rural communities in South Africa. Teachers used the pocket PC
and also came together regularly in cluster meetings to support each other and discuss the issues they were
facing in their classrooms. The study highlighted the ways the pocket PCs provided “anytime anyplace
166

3. IADIS International Conference e-Learning 2011
professional learning opportunities” (p. 379) that teachers actively took advantage of. Power and Thomas’
study found that over half of the teachers involved used the pocket PCs for professional development, by
accessing literacy and science e-books and resources. Teachers in the study also reported that they found
these, essentially m-learning, resources very useful in terms of their own professional development. EIA’s m-
learning approach draws on the work of Power and Thomas (2007) by providing a similar model of teacher
professional development via mobile technologies (MP3 players and mobile phones) with face-to-face cluster
support. The major difference is that most mobile phones and MP3/MP4 players now have the same capacity
as the pocket PCs (25 iPaq H4150) used in their study, but at a much lower cost.
2.2 SMS in Teacher Education and for Improving Student Learning
There are a number of studies on short message service (SMS) and its uses in teacher education. One small
pilot study investigated how supervising teacher and pre-service students could discus and share their ideas
about teaching methods through SMS and digital photography as a part of the supervision process (Seppälä
and Alamäki, 2003). Research that looks at formal uses of SMS in education in the Philippines and non-
formal uses of SMS in Mongolia found that the inherent popularity of SMS text messaging offers important
opportunities for formal and non-formal education in Asia (Librero et al., 2007). Vilojen, DuPreez and Cook
(2005) used SMS to support student learning at the University of Pretoria in South Africa. In their project,
SMS was used for asynchronous academic support. This included the facility for students to ask questions
via SMS and receive feedback. Students could also phone in to listen to mini lectures using interactive voice
response technology and take interactive multiple-choice quizzes. The project also uses SMS to direct
students to specific resources needed to complete academic tasks.
Two projects from South Africa, Dr Maths on Mxit and M4Girls use SMS to enhance student learning.
Dr Maths on Mxit is a programme aimed at assisting high school students with maths homework. It uses a
tutoring system using MXit1, a free instant messaging program for mobile phones. Dr Maths makes use of a
call centre-like functionality that runs from a client-based platform on a PC. Through SMS, it provides m-
learning tutoring and support for students with maths tutors in either English and/or Afrikaans (SAIDE,
2008). The M4Girls project2 is a partnership between Nokia, Mindset Network, and the Department of
Education (North West Province of South Africa) that delivers maths content using SMS on mobile phones
for female learners. The project targeted the development of maths competencies in year 10 students from
impoverished communities with the primary aim of empowering girl learners. SMS in teacher education,
and student learning provide examples of how m-learning can be leveraged to meet specific professional
development and educational and/or social needs of teachers and students. EIA is currently drawing on these
studies as we field test SMS as a means to provide teacher professional development to promote student
centred learning and communicative English language teaching.
3. EIA’S INNOVATIONS IN TEACHER PROFESSIONAL
DEVELOPMENT
EIA developed an innovative ICT-enhanced programme of teacher professional development drawing on key
findings from current research and their own baseline study entitled ‘An Observation Study of English
Lessons in Primary and Secondary Schools in Bangladesh’ (EIA, 2009). The study found that traditional or
structural (grammar-based) methods of formal English teaching and learning were the primary English
teaching methods used across the country. This method is characterised by English teachers standing at the
front of the classroom habitually reading from textbooks and asking closed (recall) questions of individual
pupils or choral responses. The study found there was a general absence of visual resources used by teachers
with the exception of the blackboard. With a grammar-based approach being used throughout the country, the
study highlights the reality that most pupils have few opportunities to speak or listen to English for
communicative purposes during their English classes. Furthermore, there was little evidence that students
were able to listen to native speakers or very fluent English speakers because many English teachers in
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!
1 For more information see http://www.mxit.com/
2 For more information see http://www.mobileactive.org/case-studies/m4girls-empowering-female-students !
167

4. ISBN: 978-972-8939-38-0 © 2011 IADIS
Bangladesh have low levels of English language proficiency. The study found that most English teachers’
(76%) English language proficiency was within the ranges of grades 2 to 6.
In response to the research and six baseline studies carried out by EIA, a school-based open learning
model was developed. The model included programmes of ICT-enhanced professional development and
work-based learning (supported by the Open University’s open-distance learning methodologies) for primary
and secondary school teachers. The primary goals being to empower teachers to change their classroom
practice by adopting a CLT approach to English language teaching. The teacher is at the center of EIA’s
model (Figure 1) of professional development:
!
Figure 1. EIA School-Based Open Learning Model of professional development (Shohel, Mahruf & Banks, 2010)
EIA’s model is comprehensive and designed to provide professional development to 90,000 Bangladeshi
teachers by the end of the project in 2017 while simultaneously improving their English language
proficiency. This will happen through workshops, peer support, technology enhanced teacher professional
development and ongoing face-to-face support that encourages teachers to engage in reflective practice.
At the core of EIA’ ICT-enhanced teacher professional development are twelve Bangladeshi teacher
development coordinators (TDCs) who received extensive English CLT and pedagogical training from The
Open University team and EIA’s Bangladesh-based Head of Teacher Training and Education Advisor. They
provide face-to-face support through cluster meetings, phone calls and classroom visits. Two of the TDCs are
solely responsible for the materials and resource development (guides, videos, audio recordings, lesson plans,
etc). The other ten TDCs work continuously in the field and also provide support through informal phone
calls and SMS. To date (March 2011), they have trained 57 teacher facilitators (TFs), who work in pairs, out
of one school, to collaboratively provide professional development for 20 teachers in their Upazilla (district).
Each TF has an iPod touch or mobile phone with audio and film-based professional development resources
specifically designed to assist them in encouraging and assisting teacher as they try out CLT activities in
their classrooms.
The EIA school-based Open Learn model actively promotes and supports peer learning with two teachers
participating from each of the 310 schools currently involved in the project. These two teachers work through
the materials together, with support from TFs, to plan new CLT classroom activities and share their
experiences. The audio-based mobile technologies and accompanying pedagogical resources support them in
introducing new classroom practices. EIA’s model of teacher professional development is supported by high
168

5. IADIS International Conference e-Learning 2011
levels of peer support, including monthly cluster meetings with other project teachers that are facilitated by
the TFs, who also visit teachers in their schools, and facilitate the sharing of challenges, strategies and
achievements.
3.1 e-Learning Communicative Language Teaching (CLT) Resources
EIA provided extensive materials to primary teachers on MP3 players and mobile phone to assist them in
implementing communicative language teaching (CLT) practices with their students. Primary teachers’ iPod
Nanos came preloaded with audio resources specifically produced to match every lesson in the national
textbook series English for Today (National Curriculum & Textbook Board Bangladesh, 2002) at their year
level (Levels 1-5). In total, each primary teacher received 355 audio files (primarily dialogues). The iPod
Nanos (2009-2010) and low cost mobile phones (2011) also provide primary teachers with songs for the
beginning and end of every lesson, and a range of supplementary songs, poems and other readings3. In
addition, all primary teachers have EIA-produced Activity Guides at each of the 5 grade levels with
complimentary visual (posters, flash cards, figurines) and print resources (audio transcripts of the dialogues).
Secondary teachers receive fewer additional classroom resources because they generally have higher levels
of English language proficiency and have received more pedagogical training then their primary
counterparts. To support CLT practices in the secondary classroom, teachers are provided with lesson plan
cards, maps, and photos. The sheer volume of materials (355 audio files, visual, tactile and print-based
resources and activity guides) made available to teachers thus far in the project (more than 700) is significant.
By 2012, 4000 additional teachers will be provided with these same resources making EIA one of the largest
CLT teacher professional development projects in the world. Then in stages the project will leverage the
technology available to provide up to 100,000 teachers with audio files and speakers on mobile phones or SD
cards to make the primary aim of the project, providing English language to 25 million Bangladeshis as a
tool for better access to the world economy, viable and sustainable.
3.2 “A Trainer in your Pocket’
EIA is a nine-year project that will provide professional development for 90,000 teachers by 2017. This
massive undertaking was not conceived as programme with a fixed end date, rather the idea or ethos behind
the programme was to provide a vehicle for ongoing self-supported learning after the project officially ends.
To this end, the idea of the ‘trainer in your pocket’ emerged as a viable way to provide teachers with the
professional development required to meet EIA’s overall goal after 2017.
In a pilot study (2009-2010) to test the viability of the ‘trainer in your pocket’ idea as well as provide
teachers with audio resources, EIA provided teacher professional development resources (audio and video)
preloaded on the Apple iPod Nano (primary) and Touch (secondary). These devices included a suite of audio
resources teachers could use in the classroom to support the national curriculum because they were also
supplied with portable, rechargeable speakers. The ‘trainer in your pocket’ set of professional development
resources to support primary teachers’ own learning included 18 video clips and 4 audio recordings that
exemplify a range of correct and incorrect English CLT classroom practices. Figure 2 is an example of the
trainer in your pocket’, an ICT-enhanced teacher professional development video entitled, ‘Doing pair-work’
developed by The Open University. It is intended for teachers to use on their own and the incorrect (red x in
the lower right hand corner) and correct (green check in the lower right hand corner) ways to introduce and
implement pair work in an English CLT classroom. The secondary teachers were supplied with 46 audio files
dedicated to teacher professional development on the iPod Touch. In the pilot 460 primary teachers were
given an iPod Nano and 230 secondary teachers were given the iPod Touch. Secondary teachers’ iPod touch
was preloaded with audio podcasts enhanced with synchronized text and images. This was the core of their
the ICT-enhanced teacher professional development materials. They also received a print-based teacher
professional development package entitled, English for Today in Action, that presents 12 CLT modules
(Active listening, predictive listening, using visual aids, creative writing, etc.) that they can adapt and use to
teach communicative English.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!
3
For examples of EIA audio and video materials visit http://www.eiabd.com/eia/
169

6. ISBN: 978-972-8939-38-0 © 2011 IADIS
Figure 2. ICT-enhanced Teacher Professional Development on the iPod Touch
We are currently field-testing the same audio and film resources on a much cheaper mobile phone-based
kit using the Nokia C1-01. This phone sells for £38 and can support up to an 32 gigabyte (GB) secure digital
(SD) card which can hold all of EIA’s materials (Figure 3). Additionally, we are also field-testing EIA
materials on SD cards which we are supplying to the teachers for their own mobile phones. In January 2012,
4000 teachers will receive the new cheaper kits and have EIA’s ‘trainer’ in their pockets. We are piloting a
series of SMS based teacher professional development around English CLT practices. SMS will also be used
to support the ongoing face-to-face teacher professional development as well as peer-based support for
teachers within and beyond their Upazilla (district). Initial feedback from participating teachers about the
SMS professional development is encouraging. They enjoy receiving the short messages and it encourages
them to try out or revisit CLT practices in their classroom.
!
Figure 3. ICT-enhanced Teacher Professional Development on the iPod Touch
4. THE RESPONSE FROM TEACHERS
EIA conducted two studies after six months of teachers’ participation in EIA. The first was a large-scale
observational study of the classroom practices of primary and secondary teachers after they participated in
face-to-face and ICT-enhanced (‘trainer in your pocket’) teacher professional development programmes.
Overall findings of the first study found teachers’ pedagogical practices changed significantly as they moved
away from grammar-based approaches towards more communicative English language teaching practices.
The second smaller scale study explored the reaction of teachers in regards to the new audio, visual and print
resources they were provided on the iPod Nano and Touch.
Findings of the first study indicate a noticeable change in teachers’ pedagogical practices. This is
primarily indicated by the decrease in overall percentage of teacher talk time during the lesson (34%) and an
increase in the overall percentage of pupil talk time (27%). Additionally, when the primary teachers were
speaking, they used English the majority of the time (71%). In comparison with an earlier baseline study of
170

7. IADIS International Conference e-Learning 2011
English lessons in primary and secondary schools in Bangladesh, where 27% of teachers spoke in English
more than they did in Bangla. In the second study, primary (98%) and secondary (98%) teachers reported on
interview that they enjoyed taking part in EIA and believed their communicative English language
proficiency improved. As a result of their familiarity and experience using the mobile audio technologies,
most teachers (96% Primary; 86% Secondary) noted they felt more confident in using and modeling spoken
English in the classroom. More important findings indicate the majority of teachers (86% Primary; 92%
Secondary) have changed their pedagogical practices to focus on communication, with grammar being
explained in context. 91% or primary and 90% of secondary teachers report often designing activities to have
pupils interact in English; and all secondary teachers and 93% of primary teachers report improved pupil
motivation as a result in changes to classroom practice. It is important to also note that many of these
teachers still struggle with teaching communicative English due to low and/or developing English language
proficiency levels. More detailed and comprehensive research needs to be undertaken to uncover the changes
in practice indicated by these preliminary research studies.
5. CONCLUSION
It is clear that e-Learning and ICT-enhanced forms of teacher professional development can play a central
role in international development agendas, particularly large scales ones like English in Action (EIA). I
began this paper by providing an overview of how e-Learning and SMS are being leveraged to support and
train teachers across differing international contexts both in the developed and developing world. I then
outlined EIA’s innovative approach to teacher professional development which effectively blends face-to-
face and ICT-enhanced approaches first using MP3 players and now mobile phones. As a large-scale project
that aims to improve the English proficiency of 25 million people through school-based professional
development approaches (The Open University) and the mass media (The BBC World Trust), the notion of
the ‘trainer in your pocket’ can be viewed both the means and the ends of development. It allows or provides
for individual freedom to access vital audio and visual resources to improve teaching practice alongside self-
directed learning modules. Additionally as we are only three years into a nine year project, our ‘trainer in
your pocket’ model currently provides the technology to create, access and leverage new teacher networks
for communication and lifelong learning possibilities in an emerging economy. This is because it fosters the
creation, sharing and/or distribution of knowledge (pedagogical, technical and otherwise), through user-based
content generation, which I view as fundamental in increasing the possibilities of a person or community to
develop to full potential.
English in Action (EIA) is a project designed to contribute to the growth of Bangladesh by providing
English language as a tool for better access to the world economy. The idea is that by increasing individuals’
English language proficiency will also increase their social and economic opportunities. Through EIA’s
developmental Research (2008 – 2011) carried out with 700 teachers from government schools across
Bangladesh, as well as some 60 teachers from NGOs, we have tested the ‘trainer in the pocket’ and view this
form of e-Learning as one of the most effective, scalable and sustainable models of supported open and
distance learning for English language teachers in Bangladesh. As we scale up and provide mobile phone-
based technology kits for 4000 teachers (alongside face-to-face teacher professional development) with EIA
materials on SD cards and portable speakers, we will have more reliable data on the effectiveness of this
form of e-Learning. The challenge will be in further developing our open distance learning modules on the
mobile phones which will eventually need to replace the face-to-face teacher professional development at the
end of the project. Directed efforts have also been undertaken to work with teachers from rural communities
(80% of the 700 teachers in the developmental research were from rural communities) who do not have
reliable sources of electricity. Our current field test is also supplying two schools with solar panel chargers
(£32 each) to ensure they can charge and use the mobile phones and portable rechargeable speakers. The
speakers themselves also run off of mobile phone batteries and have a slot for the SD card to maximize the
potential of being able to use EIA’s audio resources for classroom-based English language teaching and
learning.
A core component of EIA’s school-based open learning model of professional development is working to
build capacity among teachers themselves which explicitly addresses the human and teacher professional
development impacts of ICT implementation. This is an example of e-Learning for development that ensures
171

8. ISBN: 978-972-8939-38-0 © 2011 IADIS
the stakeholders (teachers) are central to the process right from the beginning. EIA’s framework although
massive in scale (25 million individuals) leverages ‘the trainer in your pocket’ to facilitate grassroots
innovation and achievement of localized community goals around improving/changing English education,
thereby making it more communicative and student-centred. In this view, EIA’s target is centred on human
development strategies with e-Learning and ICT-enhanced professional development being complimentary,
but essential strategies for development in emerging economies like Bangladesh.
REFERENCES
Duan, Y., He, Q., Feng, W., Li, D., and Fu, Z. (2010). A study on e-learning take-up intention from an innovation
adoption perspective: A case in China. Computers & Education. Vol. 55 Issue 1, p237-246.
English in Action (EIA). (2010). Baseline study 3: An observational study of English lessons in primary and secondary
schools in Bangladesh. Dhaka, Bangladesh: The Open University and BMB Mott McDonald. Retrieved from:
http://www.eiabd.com/eia/index.php/publications/baseline-studies
Gronlund, A. & Islam, Y.M. (2010). A mobile e-learning environment for developing countries: the Bangladesh Virtual
Interactive Classroom. Information Technology for Development, Vol. 16 Issue 4, p244-259.
Kalinga, E. A., Burchard, R. B. Bagile, and Trojer, L. (2007). Strategies for Developing e-LMS for Tanzania Secondary
Schools. International Journal of Social Sciences, Vol. 2 Issue 3, p145-150.
Karagiorgi, Y., & Charalambous, K. (2006). ICT in-service training and school practices: in search for the impact.
Journal of Education for Teaching, Vol. 32, No. 4, pp. 395–411.
Li, L. & Walsh, S. (2010). Technology uptake in Chinese EFL classes. Language Teaching Research, Vol. 15, No 1,
p99–125.
Libreroa, F., Ramos, A.J.,, Ranga, A.I., Triñona, J., & Lambert, D. (2007). Uses of the Cell Phone for Education in the
Philippines and Mongolia. Distance Education, Vol. 28, No. 2, pp. 231–244.
Lim, C. P. (2007). Building Teachers’ Capacity for Using Technologies in Schools: A case study of in-service
professional development in Barbados. Educational Media International, Vol. 44, No. 2,, pp. 113–128.
Mukama, E., & Andersson, S.B. (2008). Coping with change in ICT-based learning environments: newly qualified
Rwandan teachers’ reflections. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, Vol. 24, 156–166
Onn, S.B. (2010). Competencies of Secondary School Heads of Departments: Implications on Continuous Professional
Development. European Journal of Social Sciences. Vol. 14, Issue 3, p464-470.
Power, T. & Thomas, R. (2007). The classroom in your pocket. The Curriculum Journal, Vol. 18, No. 3, pp. 373 – 388.
Seppälä, P., & Alamäki, H. (2003). Mobile learning in teacher training. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, Vol. 19,
p330-335.
Smith, C. (2010). 'Distance learning' or 'learning at a distance'? Case study of an education initiative to deliver an in-
service bachelors degree in Zambia. Innovations in Education & Teaching International, Vol. 47 Issue 2, p223-233.
Viljoen, M.J., ILJOEN, Du Preez, C. & Cook, A. (2005). The case for using SMS technologies to support distance
education students in South Africa. Perspectives in Education, Volume 23(4)
Zhang, J. (2007). A cultural look at information and communication technologies in Eastern education. Educational
Technology Research and Development, Vol. 55, p301-314.
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
!
i
For more information see http://www.bbcjanala.com/ and
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/trust/whatwedo/where/asia/bangladesh/2010/01/100115_bangaldesh_janala_project_overview.shtml
172