Mobile devices have been steadily growing in quantity, quality and scope over the last decade. Latest figures released by ACMA show that there is more than one mobile phone for every Australian citizen which is an enormous amount of devices. These records are for mobile phones alone so if other mobile devices such as PDA’s, ipods, MP3s, eBook readers, tablets and laptops are included in the statistics the number would be truly staggering. As they took such a hold on mainstream culture, it was just a matter of time before their potential for education would be examined.
Mobile devices offer opportunities that are unique. In the past teachers and teaching has been confined to set hours and set places for learning. Mobile devices change this static nature of education and enables users to adopt an “anywhere, anytime” attitude towards learning. The flexibility and freedom that can be obtained from mobile devices can only truly be used to its fullest potential if a shift in teaching and learning practices occurs. The pedagogical implications of mobile learning will be that teachers will have to look at changing from “being transmitters of knowledge to facilitators of learning.” ( Corbeil & Valders-Corbeil, 2007) The reality of this for teacher is that rather than looking at whole class lessons which are teacher centred, the learning will become more focussed on personal, collaborative and longer term learning journeys. Knowledge can be accessed from many different sources so teachers, rather than dispensing knowledge, will need to focus on how students locate, evaluate and use information. To enable teachers to keep up with both the changing pedagogical practices as well as the rapid advances in technology, teachers will need to arm themselves with new strategies, adaptive techniques and willingness to capitalise on the potentials that technology offers. Schuler (2009) supports this with the belief that education needs to be constantly reinventing itself in order to match student involvement and achievement with developing advancements in technology.
Mobile devices do offer many potential benefits to education. These include the anywhere, anytime access to content, increased interaction, ability to review or obtain necessary information quickly. They can also enhance student centred learning and support personalised learning at the student’s level. There are many benefits to be gained from the ability to access information and communicate quickly and easily, anywhere and anytime. These benefits however are tempered by the challenges that could be encountered. These include problems such as cheating, feelings of isolation, a growing gap between tech savvy students (and for that matter, teachers) and those who are not, as well as difficulty with enabling access to up to date and compatible programs. If the potential benefits are realised and the challenges minimised it is predicted that there will be major implications for teaching and learning created by mobile learning.
Predictions of future trends in learning created by mobile learning focused on learning becoming more learner centred, involve learners in connecting with resources and people, creating and publishing of digital media demonstrating their learning and reflections and a focus on increased collaboration. Interestingly, in the four years since this paper was published all of these predictions have started to become more evident in everyday teaching and learning practices.
These learning trends also bring questions that need to be asked about potential pedagogical issues and implications for mobile learning. Some of the questions that Corbeil & Valdes-Corbeil (2007)posed for reflection are:
Will the quality of the instructional content be improved, enhanced, or downgraded by transferring to a mobile-compatible format?
What types of resistance to change will faculty and students experience?
How will the instructor's role change?
These and other questions posed by mobile learning will need to be considered as the implications could be far-reaching.
So, are we ready for mobile learning? The authors believe that there will be “evolutionary rather than revolutionary changes.” In other words, educators and learners will adopt and adapt as interests, new technologies and new methods emerge and evolve. This will need to be a continuous and deliberate process in order to keep education current, engaging and relevant to students.
While I found this paper interesting and thought provoking in terms of reflection on pedagogical issues, I felt that it left out several major implications that could also impact on the educational potential of mobile learning. The authors talked a lot about a gap widening between students who are tech-savvy and those who are not. I believe that the technical use of devices is of far less concern than the impact that lack of information literacy skills would have not only on education but on being a successful lifelong learner. Students with information literacy skills have the ability to locate, evaluate and use information effectively and being information literate is a "basic survival skill for those who wish to be successful members of the 21st century." (Learning for the Future, 2001, p2) It would not matter if they can connect to information anywhere, anytime if the skill base did not exist to deal with this information effectively.
Another issue that needed to be addressed in this paper is cyber safety and the issues involved with students being able to access the internet anywhere and anytime. Strong boundaries and guidelines will need to be established and students educated in these. Issues involving cyber bullying, privacy of personal information, inappropriate content, copyright issues and online safety will increase in line with the growth of mobile device usage, the interconnectedness of students and increases in interaction with the internet. Rather than banning these devices, careful reflection on procedures and policies to deal with cyber- safety issues will assist in their safe use.
The authors of this paper believe that “the implications of mobile learning are far-reaching, and its potential effect on education profound” (2007) I agree with this statement but suggest that in order to make sure that these implications and effects are positive careful thought will need to be given to how and why they are used in educational settings and how teachers can best adapt their pedagogical practices to maximise the potential learning benefits offered by mobile devices. “Are we ready for mobile learning?” is the wrong question to be asking. It is here whether we are ready or not. I believe that instead we should be asking “How can I make mobile learning effective, successful and safe?”
ACMA. (2008, April 28). Number of mobile phones now exceeds australia’s population. Retrieved from http://www.acma.gov.au/WEB/STANDARD.PC/pc=PC_311135
Corbeil, J., & Valders-Corbeil, M. (2007). Are you ready for mobile learning?. educause Quarterly, 30(2), Retrieved October 12, 2011 from http://www.educause.edu/EDUCAUSE Quarterly/EDUCAUSEQuarterlyMagazineVolum/AreYouReadyforMobileLearning/157455
Learning for the Future : Developing Information Services in Schools. (2001). Australia: Curriculum Corporation
Shuler, C. (2009). Pockets of Potential:Using Mobile Technologies to Promote Children’s Learning.New York:The Joan Ganz Cooney Center at Sesame Workshop
Recently I saw a mobile technology that made me stop and look twice. It was the new Motorola mobile that has a dual core processor. The phone could either be used as a mobile computer/phone/camera/MP4 but then you could place the mobile in the dock which was connected to a screen and a keyboard. Hey presto, you had a desktop. You could also place the phone in the docking bay of a laptop and you had a laptop to use. I could see the amazing benefits that schools could obtain by using technologies like these. Schools, however, are generally slow to process change and technology is so fast paced at changing that there is almost always a discontinuity between the two.
ReplyDeleteby Karen D
I think one of the problems of traditional (teacher-centred) classroom teaching is that it has the potential to stifle children's natural inquisitiveness and desire to learn new things. What I find exciting about mobile devices is their potential to be used a bridge between the classroom and the “big wide world”. They can act as extension of the existing resources available to children (and adults) to seek out their own knowledge. If as teachers we can help to incorporate them into our classrooms, while at the same time increasing our focus of the learning process as student centred, I think that we can help to spark student's interest in their own learning journey, a journey that is lifelong and not confined to the classroom.
ReplyDeleteOf course to do this requires that teachers become knowledgable in how to use these devices. BUT... I think this also present an interesting opportunity for group collaborative learning. It is widely accepted that younger generations are far more competent using technology than their elders, what a great opportunity to tables and have the students instruct their teachers in how use and become competent in their usage and have students come up with ways in which they can and would like to use them in their classroom learning, this could be quite empowering.