USING MOBILE PHONES TO DEVELOP TEACHING AND LEARNING RESOURCES FOR HISTORY EDUCATION Kaviraj Goodoory, Seema Goburdhun 1 Mauritius Institute of Education (MAURITIUS) 2 Mauritius Institute of Education (MAURITIUS) kgoodoory@mieonline.org, s.goburdhun@mieonline.org Abstract This paper describes the experiences of pre-service trainee teachers in Mauritius in designing and developing video clips with mobile phones, for use as teaching and learning resources for History at primary level. History is perceived as a dull and boring subject requiring rote learning. One way to make the teaching and learning of History lively and interesting is through the use of technology. Teachers are using mobile technology in their daily life to communicate and share multimedia information. This study involved a sample of trainee teachers to select a historical site found in their locality, work a storyboard, shoot with their mobile add narration and notes to produce a clip. While research has been done in the teaching and learning of history and the use of technology, no much research exist on the use of Mobile as a pedagogical tool. Also, no such work has been conducted in the local context. The purpose of this research was to investigate the experiences of trainee teachers in the developing of video clips for the teaching and learning of history. The data for this case study was gathered through an online questionnaire from 12 participants, structured and semi-structured interview and the analysis storyboards, and video clips produced. The findings reveal that the perception of trainee teachers about History Education has changed. The project also helped trainee teachers develop communication and interpersonal skills. The trainee teachers also realized the potential of Mobile phones as a pedagogical tool. This study shows use of mobile phones to develop teaching resources. Such activities engage trainee teachers in thinking, reflecting and researching about ways of taking teaching of history beyond the pages of textbooks. Keywords: Mobile phone, history education, teacher training. 1. INTRODUCTION Mauritius is a small island in the south west of Indian Ocean. The island is characterized by its multicultural and multiethnic diversity. The islanders attach a great importance to education. The quality of education imparted in any country is to a great extent determined by the quality of teachers. Teacher education therefore has been considered crucial, in the Republic of Mauritius, not only for ensuring greater professionalism in teachers but also for facilitating school improvement and effectiveness ( [1] [2] ). The Mauritius Institute of Education (MIE) is the only teacher training institute in the island offering training to both in service and pre service teachers with a wide range of programmes to equip them with knowledge and strategies to deliver confidently in the class. Emphasis is also laid on acquainting the teachers to the latest trends in teaching and developing innovative and best practices. In Mauritius as far as teaching of History is concerned Boodhoo ( [3]) presents the subject as one in its own right in the National curriculum ( [1] [2]) that aims at stimulating ‘the imagination and develop critical thinking in youngsters’ ( [3],p.73). Yet, it has been observed that the teaching of History in schools emphasizes more on the memorization of facts and figure rather that the development of any skills which History teaching should entail ( [4], [4]). Phillip, I ( [5]) argues in that direction by pointing out that students ‘do’ History rather than ‘learn’ History. Doing history meant mainly the memorization of factual information, dates and names by learners, without actually engaging in the imagination and critical thinking processes. It has also been seen that, rather than allowing the student the opportunity to think about historical events, today’s climate of standardized testing encourages the students to simply memorize historical dates and events. As a result, students view history as boring at the very least ( [4], [6]). Naeck ( [7] ), reflecting on the teacher training programme provided at the MIE, sees lectures and reading not sufficient to enable new teachers to gain sufficient grasp of children’s lives and their