Big Issues in Mobile Learning

Mobile learning projects are blooming all over Europe. They range from the use of Personal Digital Assistants (PDAs) and tablet computers in classrooms, through mobile phones to support learning between schools and museums, to context-aware technology for field trips and tourist visits. International conferences such as mLearn, WMUTE and Handheld Learning are presenting the details of these projects, but it is time to reflect on the issues behind the growth in mobile learning. This was the aim of the “Big Issues in Mobile Learning” workshop organised as part of the mobile learning theme of the Kaleidoscope European Network of Excellence in Technology Enhanced Learning. It brought together forty researchers in mobile learning from across Europe for a two-day workshop where seven themes were discussed in depth for a day each, by groups of between 8 and 13 people. The participants also held plenary sessions to survey the mobile learning landscape, presenting and debating important implications from the discussions. “We've got a reasonable idea about what works,” said Mike Sharples (University of Nottingham, UK) in his opening remarks. Among these are classroom response systems, laptops and tablets with standard software, text message alerts sent to mobile phones, small-group learning with wireless devices, multimedia museum guides, but these are just the tip of the iceberg. issue clear using portable devices, but learning across contexts. As said, it is about society move”. learning not something people do; learning people do. With technology getting smaller, more personal, ubiquitous, and powerful, it better supports a mobile society. mobile there is also a rapid growth in mobile phone use the Projects in are beginning to explore how basic phone technology can be used to coordinate and support teacher training and distance learning. Today’s big issues are only going to get bigger. ‘Mobile learning’ may be the buzzword of the day, but the emphasis should be on what people learn as much as how they learn. The Big Issues participants are mapping out the territory of the mobile society, and Kaleidoscope provides a context for exploring this new place. As a result of the dedicated work of the mobile learning community, in recent years we have witnessed an explosion in the growth of mobile learning across all sectors of education. While this is to be welcomed, a re-conceptualisation of the precise nature of mobile learning needs to occur. Why? Primarily because mobile learning has been a victim of its own success. Many communities have defined it based on their own particular experiences, uses and backgrounds. This has led to a fertile proliferation of views and perspectives. However, the downside is that the unique nature of mobile learning is becoming very difficult to characterise. Worst still, mobile learning, as a concept, is currently ill-defined; it seems to be all things to all people. Formal definitions from European and Government agencies espouse its relationship to e-learning. Technologists place a high emphasis on novelty and the functionality of the devices (phones, PDAs, iPods, PSPs) themselves. Some researchers focus on the mobility of the learner. Yet others focus on learning in informal settings, leading to a juxtaposition between mobile learning and formal education. Furthermore, mobile learning applications are underpinned by many different theories of learning. While this breath of perspectives is to be welcomed because it leads to many possibilities for development, it poses problems when trying to develop a theory of mobile learning. Therefore, this workshop proposed that, as a community, we pragmatically delineate the unique dimensions of mobile learning. Background Affective factors play a strong role (both positive and negative) in harnessing technology for learning. For example, as long ago as 1983, Open University research on students’ use of learning technologies showed that students were strongly affected not only by their own perceptions and experiences, but also other students’ experiences, particularly bad experiences (Jones and O’Shea, 1983). Such perceptions and bad experiences with technology have persisted, although in some areas (e.g. collaborative on-line learning) many students have positive experiences and really value working together and this has a significant impact on their engagement and satisfaction. The advent of widely used mobile devices has changed the landscape however. Whilst a low but significant proportion of learners decide not to use (or don’t have access to) computers, the usage figures for mobile technologies are much higher. So it seems that the anxieties or lack of confidence that users experience with static technologies don’t apply so much to (at least some) mobile devices. It is argued, therefore, that many learners find mobile devices to be particularly attractive and are motivated to use them. As yet, however, there is little analysis or understanding of what it is that makes mobile devices so engaging. This was the starting point for the workshop on affective factors in learning with mobile devices. To paraphrase the early Malone paper (Malone, 1981): what makes mobile devices fun? As yet, however, this line of thinking has relatively little empirical evidence, nor do we know whether the theories of motivation that have been applied to non-mobile learning apply equally well and are adequate for this new context. It was therefore proposed that this is a key area for investigation. Most young people in Europe now have one or more mobile computer/communicators (phones, media players, handheld games consoles). Many also engage in rich networking and learning activities at home, through internet browsing, web searching, messaging, chat forums, and online communities. Background Although there are tried and tested methods for evaluation of specific applications of technology for learning, there are no existing comprehensive frameworks for broader formative evaluation in the mobile environment, largely because of its novelty. Relatively few teachers and learners have experience of working in this way, so we are simultaneously introducing new ways of engaging in learning with new artefacts and evaluating technical and pedagogic effectiveness. This requires careful consideration so as not to skew the evaluation data gathered from users, who may find themselves fascinated by the new devices in a way which they may find interesting, and even fun, but which produces no lasting valuable impact on their work practices. In addition to this complexity, the mobile environment is eminently suited to supporting learning outside the context of curricula, institutions and timetables. Our potential subjects of study may be wandering around studying things that interest them, at times that suit themselves, with little or no concern for consistency. The discussion of this issue will involve thinking about methods for identifying, recording, understanding, and evaluating such activity. Background The wide spread of mobile devices with Internet capabilities is contributing to the rapid expansion of the wireless Internet . The rapid adoption of mobile and wireless technologies by end users allows them to produce a variety of digital content (images, sound, and video) on the spot. This latest development brings new opportunities for the implementation of a wide range of new mobile services, as well as new roles when it comes to information providers and information consumers. New patterns of interaction have developed regarding how people use mobile devices and services. Clear indications of this can be found in sites such as www.myalbum. se, www.flickr. com, www.nokia. com/lifeblog. Even in educational settings, students can now easily produce mobile multimedia content during their different learning activities. The use of advanced computing and information technology in educational settings has increased significantly during the last decade. Initially, the use of computer-based training, and later on networked-based learning, mainly due to the development of the World Wide Web, led to the definition of the concept of e-learning . Advancements in mobile and wireless technologies have also had an impact in educational settings, thus generating a new approach for technology-enhanced learning called m-learning (mobile learning). The rapid development of these latest technologies combined with access to content almost everywhere and every time, allows learners to experience new situations regarding learning in a variety of situations and not only in school settings. This latest view on technology-enhanced learning supported by wireless technologies and ubiquitous computing is referred to ubiquitous learning or u-learning . All these possibilities of using mobile interactive multimedia and communication in educational settings offer innovative ways for supporting learning, collaboration and communication. While this mobile/wireless computing revolution is having a major impact on the ways people communicate and interact, this transformation does not live up to the promises and expectations when it comes to schools and universities. To be sustainable and more than yet another volatile trend in technology enhanced learning (TEL), mobile learning needs to be contextualised in broader, integrative educational scenarios. In these scenarios, mobile devices need to inter-operate with embedded ubiquitous technologies and also with network and server infrastructures, and they need to support well grounded educational functions. Small mobile devices are unlikely to be a interface for visual information processing (such as visual/graphical modelling environments). Here, we should explore how such devices can provide auxiliary functions, e.g. as input devices and note taking instruments. However, there is a central role for smart phones and the like in language learning, or any other type of voice