Mobile device for teaching and learning

 

In all aspects of modern societies, Technology is rapidly growing utilizing as teaching and learning tools in educational activities [1]. For both educators and learners mobile learning becomes the opportunities to explore education [2]. Using mobile and internet technologies learners enables to access educational materials anywhere and anytime. Due to some features of mobile devices like they are generally cheap, portable and flexible are attracting to learners and teachers. Several applications including general software such as Word, Excel, and PowerPoint can be useful in the teaching and learning process [3]. Mobility features of mobile device is the special features that distinguishes from other learning technologies. Despite of its benefits for learning, it cannot fully replaced traditional education but rather can increase the value of existing learning styles [4].

Globally, Teachers and students uses mobile phones for educational purposes for sharing information, consulting dictionaries and thesauri, They portrayed one of the application for teaching and learning in which it is portrayed as a new opportunity for the ICT use in education [5]. Without any limits in space and time mobile facialate the participatory learning, problems solving, critical thinking, and development of lifelong communication skills [6].

In many parts of the world mobile learning has become a popular area of research. Research mainly focusing on the factors affecting mobile learning acceptance. In the technological world, with the rapid development of mobile learning, mobile learning readiness and acceptance are emerging as important areas of research [7].

There are determinants of mobile adoption which include internet acess, educational programs, calculators and calendars Potential obstacles of the mobile learning include student cheating, cyberbullying, inappropriate information on the internet, and disruption [8].

The findings in developing countries regarding mobile learning in higher education suggest opportunities for collaborative learning through knowledge sharing [9].Through the use of short message service and digital materials as the supervising tools teachers and trainee students could share and discuss their ideas about various teaching methods. Using mobile device tool for delivering digital materials seem to be effective in learning which promote flexible teaching solutions, that enable access to knowledge and information using different devices including mobile, which support  learning in a variety of situations [10]. 

In most everyday computing task mobile devices are becoming more popular than using PCs and laptops. Smartphones now adopted broadly as incredibly powerful and versatile computing tools. At all the times students can do their homework, can show their games and applications to their friends means instant gratification for the students [11].

1.       1. Matimbwa, R., and Anney, V. N. (2016). Teachers' and students' perceptions of self-driven acceptance of mobile phone use as an ICT teaching tool. J. Emerg. Trends Educ. Res. Policy Stud. 7, 91–106.

2.     2. Liu, Y., Li, H., and Carlsson, C. (2010). Factors driving the adoption of m-learning: an empirical study. Comput. Educ. 55, 1211–1219

3.      3. Mtega, W. P., Bernard, R., Msungu, A. C., and Sanare, R. (2012). “Using mobile phones for teaching and learning purposes in higher learning institutions: the Case of Sokoine University of Agriculture in Tanzania,” in Proceedings and Report of the 5th UbuntuNet Alliance Annual Conference (Dar es Salaam), 118–129.

4.      4. Liaw, S. S., Hatala, M., and Huang, H. M. (2010). Investigating acceptance toward mobile learning to assist individual knowledge management: based on activity theory approach. Comput. Educ. 54, 446–454.

5.       5. Lepp, A., Barkley, J. E., and Karpinski, A. C. (2015). The relationship between cell phone use and academic performance in a sample of U.S. College Students. SAGE Open 5, 1–9. 

6.      6. Abas, Z. W., Peng, C. L., and Mansor, N. (2009). “A study on learner readiness for mobile learning at Open University Malaysia,” in IADIS International Conference e-Learning (Barcelona)

7.      7. Ilci, A. (2014). Investigation of Pre-Service Teachers' Mobile Learning Readiness Levels and Mobile Learning Acceptance Levels. A Thesis Submitted to The Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences of Middle East Technical University, METU, Ankara, Turkey.

8.      8. Thomas, K. M., O'Bannon, B. W., and Britt, V. G. (2014). Standing in the schoolhouse door: teacher perceptions of mobile phones in the classroom. J. Res. Technol. Educ. 46, 373–395.

9.      9. Bere, A., and Rambe, P. (2019). Understanding mobile learning using a social embeddedness approach: a case of instant messaging. Int. J. Educ. Dev. Using Inf. Commun. Technol. 15, 132–153.

10.  10. Seppälä, P., & Alamäki, H. (2003). Mobile learning in teacher training. Journal of computer assisted learning, 19(3), 330-335.

11.   11. Tillmann, N., Moskal, M., De Halleux, J., Fahndrich, M., Bishop, J., Samuel, A., & Xie, T. (2012, July). The future of teaching programming is on mobile devices. In Proceedings of the 17th ACM annual conference on Innovation and technology in computer science education (pp. 156-161).