Day Three Discussion: A Mobile Tech Revolution in Low Wage Work

Welcome to our third and final day of this panel discussion on mobile technology in low-wage work. Today, we're discussing logistics of access and use of mobile technology in the workplace. Specifically, we hope to address:

 

  • Approaches and employer incentives to pay for digital literacy training for low-skill workers and, at times, purchases of tablets

  • Differentiating uses and benefits of working with different mobile devices (smartphones v. tablets, Chromebooks or laptops)

  • The advantages and disadvantages of having employees use their own devices or using company-provided devices
 
Please share with us your comments and questions. A participant on Monday's webinar asked, "As a teacher, is my only hope to get more PCs, tablets, etc into my classroom work[ing with] companies and unions? What about government funding?"
 
We invite you to share your experiences with securing funding for mobile tech (government, corporate and foundation/non-profit). What are the needs and successes of your program when it comes to acquiring the technological resources?
 
Best,
Mike Cruse, Career Pathways Moderator
David J. Rosen, Program Management and Technology and Learning Moderator 

Comments

Michael - the discussions have been extremely informative, useful and thought provoking. Much of it has centered on the use of mobile devices in a practical way at certain types of employment, such as janitors.

I think that if we broaden the curriculum, so to speak, that financial support will be easier to obtain.

For example, what about the steps that are needed to obtain jobs, and then to advance in a company or prepare for work elsewhere?

Or how can we use mobile learning to help people become citizens, start a business, or just become better educated?

There are many foundations that are interested in funding technology in education in general, and, of course, many mobile phone providers are included in that group.

Also a broad based program is more likely to be supported by the community at large.

Many  local programs are run out of non-profit organizations that are always involved in fund-raising events. Local businesses often are the main providers.

If these centers were involved in working with community colleges, etc., then fund-raising should become easier for all concerned.

Many low wage workers are immigrants, especially from Mexico, and have been trained in certain professions, but are unable to find employment because of a lack of language skills or because they have not passed certain tests or are able to meet certain requirements.

We need to broaden the scope to meet the needs of these workers.

For example, a woman from Mexico had been trained as a nurse and worked in hospitals there until she moved to the US. Her English skills are far, but she needs to become more fluent while at the same time studying for the exams necessary in order to work as a nurse’s aid and then as a nurse. I am positive that we can provide lessons and courses via mobile devices for her. But how?

Another woman from Mexico graduated from High School there, and got a job working in a Laundromat when she came here. She needed to learn English to become a manager, and now could use a course in business management so that she can start a house-cleaning service based on clientele from the Laundromat.

I am convinced that, if we as adult educators can create something like a Mobile University to meet low wage workers needs, based on a network of adult education providers, then funding will be no problem.

Am I too optimistic?  

Paul,

I don't think that you are too optimistic, and neither does the First Lady.  In fact, Mrs. Obama's Reach Higher Initiative and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) launched the Reach Higher Career App Challenge to promote the development of mobile apps that will help students navigate education and career pathways, including career and technical education (CTE).

You can read the full press release here.  You can also watch a video of her announcement on the OCTAE blog here.

Mrs. Obama stated, “If students want to learn cutting-edge skills and prepare for successful careers, a four-year university isn’t their only choice. CTE is also an excellent option because students can get all the professional skills they need for a good job in a high-demand field, and they can do it at a fraction of the time and cost of a four-year school”.

Keep the optimism coming!

Mike Cruse

Career Pathways Moderator

michaelcruse74@gmail.com 

Hi Paul, I absolutely agree that we need to get mobile learning in the hands of everyone, and one way is to push the large cellphone service providers or the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to help. One cellphone provider, Sparrow Mobile, is creating their own venture for this- when a customer signs up for their service plan, they donate a free mobile device "pre-loaded with content to help break the cycle of poverty and empower their life." Adult educators could improve what content is provided through this initiative. And as the FCC's Lifeline program now offers free and low-cost basic 'Lifeline" cellphone plans for voice minutes and texts, it could be pushed to expand to offer low cost smart phones with data plans.

In response to Michael's question about employers purchasing of tablets/mobile devices, Daniel Montes, President/CEO of Brilliant General Maintenance, asked me to share his perspective. His goals for purchasing tablets for janitors he employs to clean Google's headquarters and other worksites are "to improve delivery to our clients and for a better way to track and measure what we do while also providing a personal benefit to our employees in their personal lives." 

If this is the case in janitorial services, imagine what other employers in our communities could find similar bottom line savings through using mobile devices. The top 5 industries shifting to use of mobile devices with front-line workers are: Retailers, Postal/Courier Industry, Healthcare, Hospitality, Transportation, and I've spoken to employers in manufacturing and food processing implementing them on the factory floors as machines increasingly utilize touch-screen interfaces.

If we can identify and approach these employers making or soon to make the shift to running their operations on mobile software (or mobile HR systems), they should be open to paying adult education providers to help their employees develop the digital literacy skills to use them. Additionally, employers can be educated to understand the high return on investment if they train their employees to become problem solvers and lifelong learners through the access to information and learning programs mobile devices offer. I find this very exciting and hope to hear what other employers we invite into win-win partnerships for digital literacy instruction.

Daniel is happy to answer any questions from the LINCS community if you have any. I'll send the questions to him and post his answers...

 

 

 

Thanks Alison for making a compelling case for adult basic skills program managers to consider partnerships with companies making the shift to mobile devices for all their employees, including frontline workers.

Let's hear from program managers who are working with companies to do this now, and from those who are considering doing this. For those who are doing it, what are the opportunities and challenges you are finding? For those who are considering doing this, what are your questions or concerns? If you reply immediately perhaps our guests will stay with us another day or two to respond.

David J. Rosen

Moderator, Program Management, and Technology and Learning CoPs

djrosen123@gmail.com

My suspicion is that there IS no one, singe answer to whether employers/educators should provide the devices or not. I've been involved in a very diverse range of mobile learning projects around the world:

- rural school kids in Africa
- funded school projects in Texas
- brick layers in Germany
- well paid tech workers in California
- front-line workers in McDonalds UK
- military medics on deployment

And seen a huge diversity of devices and approaches to funding them. I do believe that the more ownership the learner has over the device (and their learning on it), the better it sticks so prefer to go with BYOD, or maybe sponsored devices that the learner gets to keep wherever possible. The downside here is that content can be a bit more complex to make (supporting multi-device), but the effort is paid back because it tends to be more future proof too.

I realise that this approach doesn't fit all use cases - especially when some have devices and some don't - but it is normally my start position.

Alison and Michael, thank you very much for your input. Need we say more? Well, yes.  So in the meantime I am going to make a presentation at the Technology and Adult Education conference in Philadelphia in just a few weeks. The conference is part of the Philadelphia Literacy Alliance, a network of about 100 adult education providers including community colleges and community centers.

It is also a part of President Obama’s ConnectED initiative. Below is a summary of my presentation.

I also will write up a summary of this discussion to hand out to people, which I will use to promote LINCS.

Paul

Summary of presentation: ESL DISTANCE LEARNING WITH MOBILE DEVICES - from the basics to the work place

     The presentation is on the use of mobile devices in an ESL Distance Learning program and its application to the workplace and career readiness.
     Participants will learn how to use PUMAROSA, Cell-Ed and other programs on mobile phones, plus Facebook, YouTube and WhatsApp, and how to adapt these programs to the workplace.
No prior knowledge or experience required.

http://philaliteracy.org/rfptechconference2016/