Mobile Devices in the Classroom

Mobile Devices in the Classroom

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Mobile Devices in the Classroom

The advent of technology has provided immense opportunities for exploration in the contemporary environment. The education sector has undergone numerous changes pertaining to the advances in technology. With students more inclined to success despite the structural and personal challenges that may be evident, teaching curricula has expressed devotion towards the establishment of proper strategies. Such tactics have been designed to assist students in attaining effective learning regardless of inequalities and learning gaps that may exist. One of the strategies employed involves the utilization of mobile devices. Accordingly, six out of ten Americans utilize mobile devices in order to gain internet access (Smith, 2010). With the spread of paraphernalia such as smartphones, mobile devices can actually assume an imperative role in the classroom.  

The globalized spread of mobile technology illustrates the extent to which technological devices have evolved into an important aspect of general sectors (Koszalka & Ntloedibe-Kuswani, 2010). Hence, it is impossible to deny the popularity of mobile devices in social and formal settings. According to Smith (2011), 35 percent of adults possess smartphones and cell phones. As such, it is evident that smartphones are rather a common aspect. Hence, in application within the classroom, mobile devices can be used for instructional purposes since both instructors and learners are familiar with them. With such devices, learners can practically gain education in any surrounding due to ease of access (Bonk, 2009; Yeonjeong, 2011).

In application, mobile devices can be used in the facilitation of instruction and modification of student roles, learning locations, and instructional activities. With considerable access to mobile devices, persons incapable of attaining education due to location and inaccessibility can receive education due to the use of inexpensive mobile technologies within informal learning contexts (Balasubramanian, Thamizoli, Umar, & Kanwar, 2009). To this end, the use of mobile devices in the classroom can offer learners with the ease of engaging and performing research (Laureate Education, 2012). Undeniably, mobile devices can be applied successfully in the educational settings.

References

Balasubramanian, K., Thamizoli, P., Umar, A., & Kanwar, A. (2010). Using mobile phones to promote lifelong learning among rural women in Southern India. Distance Education, 31(2), 193-209. doi:10.1080/01587919.2010.502555

Bonk, C. J. (2009). U-Learning? Opener #9: Real-time mobility and portability. In C. J. Bonk (Ed.), The world is open: How web technology is revolutionizing education (pp. 293-326). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

Koszalka, T. A., & Ntloedibe-Kuswani, G. S. (2010). Literature on the safe and disruptive learning potential of mobile technologies. Distance Education, 31(2), 139-157. doi:10.1080/01587919.2010.498082

Laureate Education, Inc. (Executive Producer). (2012c). Mobile learning. Baltimore, MD: Author.

Smith, A. (2010). Pew internet & American life project: Mobile access 2010. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2010/PIP_Mobile_Access_2010.pdf

Smith, A. (2011). Pew internet & American life project: Smartphones. Retrieved from http://www.pewinternet.org/~/media//Files/Reports/2011/PIP_Smartphones.pdf

Yeonjeong, P. (2011). A pedagogical framework for mobile learning: Categorizing educational applications of mobile technologies into four types. International Review of Research in Open & Distance Learning, 12(2), 78-102.