Classroom with 3G Smartphones in Singapore

Qualcomm (NASDAQ: QCOM), through its Wireless Reach initiative, Nan Chiau Primary School and Microsoft have announced the launch of the WE Learn mobile education project, which uses 3G smartphones to create a 21st century classroom experience for Singaporean students. The announcement was made Wednesday, March 28.

The project will demonstrate how the latest wireless technology can be used to transform learning from a traditional, teacher-centric model to a student-centric, inquiry-oriented and collaborative framework where 24/7 access to resources in and out of the classroom allows students to acquire and practice 21st century competencies.

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The Singapore Ministry of Education (MOE) is working to better prepare its nation’s students to thrive in a fast-changing and highly connected world by promoting the development of self-directed learning and collaborative learning skills in its third Master plan for Information and Communications Technology (ICT) in education.

Nan Chiau is an MOE-designated Future School in Singapore. Tasked with pushing the frontier of technology, it is leading the way with a 21st century classroom that implements the MOE’s framework and serves as a model for primary schools throughout Singapore and Asia.

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With a grant from Qualcomm’s Wireless Reach initiative, the WE Learn project is providing 3G-enabled Nokia Lumia 710 smartphones enabled by Qualcomm Snapdragon processors; mobile broadband connectivity via SingTel’s 3G wireless network; a mobile learning platform (MyDesk) and educational applications developed by University of Michigan; and Microsoft’s Windows Phone operating system, which all software for these smartphones is built upon, to 350 third-grade students and their teachers at Nan Chiau.

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“With 3G smartphones and connectivity, our students have 24/7 access to educational content, web-based resources and collaborative learning tools,” said Mr. Tan, principal of Nan Chiau Primary School. “These tools give students the means to take responsibility for their own learning and enable teachers to provide individualized mentoring.”

The National Institute of Education of Singapore is assisting teachers with the development of customized curriculum in English, Science and Chinese that leverages the benefits of mobile, Internet-connected, learning devices and provides students with new learning opportunities that are not possible with paper and pencil.

Photo courtesy: Qualcomm