Multiple Mice for Computers in Education
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Thursday, March 22, 2007 4:26 AM
A distinct feature observed in computer use in
schools or rural kiosks in developing countries is the high studentto-
computer ratio. It is not unusual to see more than five children
crowding around a single display, as schools are rarely funded to
afford one PC per child in a classroom. One child controls the
mouse, while others are passive onlookers, without operational
control of the computer. Learning benefits appear to accrue
primarily to the child with the mouse, with the other children
missing out.
The obvious technical solution is to provide each child with a
mouse and cursor on screen, thus effectively multiplying the
amount of interaction per student per PC for the cost of a few
extra mice. To our surprise, both the concept and the
implementation appear to be unique to date, for the specific
application to computers in education in resource-strapped
communities, with previous work restricting studies to two mice,
or for largely non-educational applications.
We have developed software that allows multiple coloured
cursors to co-exist on the monitor, along with two sample games
with some educational content. Initial trials with both singlemouse
and multiple-mice scenarios suggest that children are more
engaged when in control of a mouse, and that more mice increases
overall engagement. Our results suggest new areas of research in
pedagogy for computers in education.
