Mapping mobile learning

Mobile technology is a game changer. For many that is already a reality. I have previously written on this blog about how mobile technology can give the edge and also about some of the social implications of learning on the move. All we needed was to reach a point in society where a critical mass of users was reached. That occurred in my estimation somewhere around 2010, and growth of ownership has been exponential since. That critical mass of users has driven a number of changes, including innovations in design of hardware and software. As I write, news is breaking of Samsung's release of the first curved display screen smartphone. Other innovations are coming, faster and faster. Prices are coming down as customer bases rise. The power of the network increases as numbers rise and more connections are made. We see this happening on a global scale through increasing mobile phone subscriptions. The Mobile World Congress predicts that as early as 2014, mobile phone subscriptions will outstrip the global population (~7.9 billion accounts). Bearing in mind that many people in poorer countries don't yet have access to mobile telephony, this means that many people will have at least two separate subscriptions, and in some cases more. This is already a trend and it is now accelerating

Mobile technology is disruptive, changing irrevocably the common, every day things many of us do. Whether it is navigating your way around the streets of an unfamiliar city or communicating with work colleagues, mobile devices provide an added, and almost always, new dimension to daily routine. What will happen if your organisation, or university fails to capitalise on these trends? What will happen if your school or business ignores the huge potential of these tools to promote learning? Recently, Lambeth Council's Andrew Jacobs, Parliament's Denise Hudson-Lawson and I got together at #learningpoollive to mindmap some of the more familiar attributes and affordances of mobile learning, and attempted to connect concepts together. We were simply playing with mobile learning ideas, seeing where the links were, and watching for what emerged. In just a few minutes of 'brainstorming' the mobile learning concept, we were quite surprised by what we witnessed taking shape on the paper.

The image above is the evidence of our random scribblings and more considered workings, showing some of the links we think are important. Who knew that there was a link between GPS, geocaching, bumpsharing and airdropping? Well there is, or at least we are hypothesising that there is. The simple ability to seek and locate others through the GPS service on your mobile phone will also allow you to bumpshare content or personal contact details using another app. Airdropping will also allow you to share content such as videos, photos or locations with your mates. Knowledge can be spread faster now that ever, through such handheld, accessible applications. Mobile devices are clearly a boon for collaborative learning, especially for those who find themselves constantly on the move. There is also no stopping BYOD (bring your own device) which is on the rise, with many organisations now trying to harness the potential of employee/student owned devices.

Here's the bottom line: We know that nomadic learning is on the increase as more and more organisations cut back on office space and encourage their employees to work from home or on the move. We know that untethered learning and working offer up a whole new world of freedom. Will the use of social media increase as a result? We think it will. Will there be a rise in user generated content, and the subsequent repurposing, sharing and organisation of this content among professional learning networks? Undoubtedly. Will we see a greater emphasis on communities of practice as a result of mobile tools and technologies? It is likely that we will. There is so much more to unpack, which we will all do over the next week or so. Watch out for the other companion blog posts by Andrew and Denise, and in the meantime, please share your own views on mobile technology and its future impact on learning! The comments box awaits....

Related blog posts:
Everything Counts by Andrew Jacobs
Mobile Learning and Personal Metrics by Steve Wheeler
Self Actuated Mobile Learning by Steve Wheeler
12 Principles of Mobile Learning by Teachthought

Photograph by Andrew Jacobs


Mapping mobile learning by Steve Wheeler is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.