The Process of Creating a Mobile Application for Teaching and Learning Herbaceous Ornamentals

A socio-technical interaction network (STIN) was used as a model to create a mobile application for teaching and learning herbaceous ornamentals for Horticulture 330 at Iowa State University.  STIN is a model from an area of research called information systems design that can be used to provide a better understanding of human interaction and technology.  The objective of this project was to use STIN to outline decisions necessary in developing an application for mobile technologies such as a smart phone. This model consists of three parts: 1) identifying socio-technical elements, 2) identifying architectural choice points, and 3) mapping these to each other.  Some socio-technical elements include: matching interest groups with technical needs/roles, incentives for participation, comparison of existing technologies and tools, and the flow of resources including money. Architectural choice points are defined as choosing between differing alternatives in technological features or social arrangements. For the development of this mobile application the interest groups identified included faculty, support staff, administrators, students, and an app development company.  Incentives and needs for each group varied considerably.  For example, faculty needs included creating teaching and learning materials for students, providing evidence of scholarship of teaching, and generating revenue.  Student incentives included the desire for mobile study materials and engaging ways to learn new information.  The incentives for other groups will also be presented. Some existing learning materials in this situation include course lectures, course packets, handouts, and textbooks. Resource flows include university money, faculty time, and employee time needed in developing supporting materials and services.  To complete the socio-technical analysis we conducted a survey with past Horticulture 330 students to indentify potential choice points. Finally we mapped all the socio-technical analysis with the technological features and social arrangements to determine the features and functionality of the app. Plant location mapping, custom note taking, quizzes with score comparison between classmates, study aids, forums, lecture notes, custom syllabi, a plant glossary, and an identification key are a few of the features developed from the use of the STIN model. This app will be tested beginning in fall 2011 with students in Horticulture 330 at Iowa State University.