What should be
considered as mobile technology (m-technology)? Naismith 2004 divides
it into 3 categories:
Portable and
personal: mobile phones, game consoles, pda, tablets, laptops.
Portable and
shared: street kiosks, interactive museum displays...
Personal and
static are also included like classroom response systems.
However a more
widely accepted definition would be the use of personal
electronic devices. The
most common devices used by teachers and learners in my experience
are mobile phones, tablet and laptops
As technology is
moving so fast, it must be understood any study being made and then
published is always late compared to the current evolution of mobile
technology and its applications.
Perceived value
by teachers
Teachers using
mobile learning see these following values according to Savile-Smith
2006.
In case of lack
of students' motivation, it can be used to catch the
students 'attention
Lightweight
compared to PCs or more traditional means like books
It is used as a
support for teaching, not its main component
For special
needs students, it may be useful
Getting “new”
technology in the classroom
However, in a lot of
classes, paper is still a very common medium but tablets and laptops
are more and more used. I usually develop my lesson-plans and
activities on my laptop. It is very handy when I am in the train, the
sizes of the screen and keys are ideal for me. When I need some
internet information I usually do it from home or the library.
Evidence based
value
Researchers noted
many benefits of mobile technology.
It is less
costly than a standard PC.
It is mobile,
so there is a continuity in its use while moving.
The numerous
applications probably stimulate more creativity in owners.
Usually learners are so savvy with it that there is no or less need in
training them, in a way it is saving time and money.
It fits with
the learners' culture so their overall learning experience is
probably better.
Even if tablets and
mobile phones are less costly, the overall cost of a subscription to
a network is quite prohibitive and some people can find it difficult
to include it in their budget. For instance I own a “vintage”
mobile phone with a pay-as-you-go SIM card.
For teenagers
learners, it is part of their culture and most of them are always
using it. Being always connected has become the way to be. When I ask
them how they got proficient with their m-technology, they usually
describe a trial and error process which is often very time
consuming. This process does not usually go well with adults and
teachers. They have less time to spare (work, house chores, children,
caring for parents...), they feel the process is too simplistic and
does not compare well with proper teaching. By the way this may be a
barrier to the use of technology by some teachers.
Potential
technical and social drawbacks of m-technology.
From a technical
point of view, Maniar (2008) noted the issue of screen and key-size.
Elias (2011) was concerned by limited memory and Crescente (2011) noted the issue of technology becoming very quickly obsolete.
There are many more
technical points to be described like:
The ability of
the Institution to provide the required bandwidth for all learners
at any time to have an adequate streaming.
Different
formats, standards, operating systems supported by different
technologies.
Previous
materials need to be rewritten/adapted for new technology.
Battery life is
limited.
Despite all those
issues m-technology is very trendy and popular among learners.
There are also
social challenges involved. From my point of view the most
challenging one is the “digital divide” that is defined in
Wikipedia as “an economic and
social inequality according to categories of persons in a given
population in their access to, use of, or knowledge of information
and communication technologies” . Other main issues follow:
Raftree and
martin (2013) show the importance of adequate support in m-education
Sharples (2000)
notes the need to design personal mobile technologies for lifelong
learning
There is no
m-learning working time directive, we do not know what is the
correct amount of time to devote to m-learning to avoid major
perturbation in learners' and teachers' personal and school lives
(Masters, 2007)
We must not
forget we are favoured living in a developed country with an easy
access to m-learning compared developing countries (Masters, 2005)
New types of
assessment are needed.
Real
authorship, piracy as well as hacking are real issues
Conceiving an
appropriate theory for m-learning and teaching is needed, it will
also need to evolve with technology.
Protection of
personal data on each individual learning evolution should be
paramount.
In our society I am
very watchful when using m-technology to be sure that every learner
could have the same chances and quality of access to learning
materials independently of the level of m-technology he/she uses.
The evolution of
m-learning/Teaching will depend on the creativity of teachers,
its evaluation as well as the evolution of technology.
In a classroom
setting, Murray (2011) described more collaboration and
communication happening among learners with the use of videos, apps
and interactive activities.
Obviously,
books, Power Point presentations on a screen can easily be replaced
by m-technology with a targeted on demand real-time access to
appropriate data.
There is a
possibility of real time access to updated information and its
processing.
Possibility of
continuity of learning inside and outside the classroom (should
there be a time constraint?)
The use of
m-technology leads to an enhancement of concept understanding as well
as the building of team skills like communication and collaboration
Naismith (2004).
Currently in the
classroom I used videos to teach. In the future I would like to
create and use podcast coupled with visual material, they would be
available online for students to progress in French.
I think the video
teaching like Khan Academy or Duolingo are going to develop. Schools
are going to collaborate more and more with these types of teaching
structure.
We will also use
more e-libraries and on-line exams.
As Bill Gates showed
in one of his TED talks, the use of self-recording in the classroom
for better refectivity and feedback will probably become a standard
in the future,
Currently
m-technology can also allow a better learning experience
In
tele-education, m-technology and sms are very useful to convey
practical information about school life (venue issues, change of
timetable, cancellations...)
Better
learner/learner and tutor/learner communication
More
collaboration belonging to a virtual community.
Teachers'
creativity will play a major part in the success of m-technology as a
tool to promote learning French. As a trainee French teacher, I like
and will use the book “Language learning with Technology”
by Stanley Graham. All through the book, the author develops ideas
for integrating technology in the classroom. It gives many examples
on how to improve learners' engagement and outcomes in language
teaching.
To
conclude, mobile Technology is currently part of the culture of our
learners. The number of tools surrounding this technology is
increasing constantly in quantity and quality. As a future French
teacher I am excited about the future of Language teaching with
m-technology
Crescente, Mary Louise; Lee, Doris
(March 2011). "Critical issues of m-learning: design models,
adoption processes, and future trends". Journal of the
Chinese Institute of Industrial Engineers 28 (2).
Digital Divide
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International Review of Research in Open and Distance Learning
12 (2): 143–156.
Maniar, N.; Bennett, E., Hand, S. &
Allan, G (2008). "The effect of mobile phone screen size on
video based learning". Journal of Software 3
(4): 51–61.
Masters, K.; Ng'ambi D. (2007).
"Proceedings of IADIS International Conference Mobile Learning".
Lisbon, Portugal. pp. 171–175.
Murray, Orrin; Nicole Olcese
(November–December 2011). "Teaching and Learning with iPads,
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Naismith, Laura; Lonsdale, Peter;
Vavoula, Giasemi; Sharples, Mike (2004). "Literature Review in
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Raftree,L.; Martin, N. (2014). “What's
holding back mobile phones for Education?”. Stanford Social
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February 11, 2013.
http://www.ssireview.org/blog/entry/whats_holding_back_mobile_phones_for_education
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