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Mobile Collaboration

Watch Alexei Peter dos Santos

introducing Mobile collaboration

Watch Howard Rheingold discussing the evolution of collaboration, collective action, and participating media. 

Mobility

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Mobile technologies, including mobile devices and application services for end-users, ubiquitous networks and mobile computing technologies, support collaboration in various contexts concerning teaching and learning. 

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According to Cambridge Dictionary Online, mobility is “the ability to have particular services available on a phone or a computer to use while travelling from place to place, without being connected by wires”. Technically, mobility encompasses all mobile functions supported by mobile computing, that involves mobile communication, mobile hardware and mobile software (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_computing). In the educational context, the introduction of mobile technology is to provide maximum mobility as well as portability and flexibility for learners and educators to access educational resources and services online, without being necessarily bound to time and locations.

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Mobility bridges flexible and collaborative relationships among learners and instructors, in which learning activities are able to be conducted in a more complementary, extendable and constructive mode than traditional in-person teaching. Synchronous and asynchronous compatibility on the learning platform allows learners and instructors not only to stay in real-time connections with each other, but also to keep everyone at their own pace. Location-aware computing enables users to quickly collect and share information related to geographical locations. The multimodal communication via mobile devices allows knowledge to be presented and communicated intuitively and accessibly, and further enhances individual learning experiences.

Mobile Devices that can be used in Teaching and Learning

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Generally speaking, almost all mobile devices can be exploited for teaching and learning purposes. At present, the common devices used include a portable computer, a smart phone, a tablet, or wearable computer devices such as an iWatch or a virtual reality headset and goggles and gloves, etc. On mobile devices, knowledge can be communicated in the form of texts, icons, images, audio, videos, and any other virtual entities.

In recent years, beyond the utilization of common mobile devices and “collaborative media” tools, educational innovators have endeavored to introduce more advanced mobile technologies into education. Mobile Augmented Reality Learning Environments have been proposed to facilitate learning in complex knowledge domains of STEM. This builds an effective learning environment for “understanding complex systems, developing adaptive expertise; and the acquisition of collaboration, communication and task coordination skills” (Ifenthaler, D. & Fseryel, D., 2013). Besides augmented reality building tangible learning environment on mobile devices, the wearable computing technology (Mann, S., Nolan, J., & Wellman, B., 2002) can help a learner to collect and visualize invisible substances, such as radio waves, in the real world.

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Watch Steve Mann's wearable computing  >>> 

Collaborative Computing

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In order to collaborate and communicate effectively, it is important to be aware of these 7 C’s of effective communication: clear, correct, complete, concrete, concise, considered and courteous.

Prons  & Cons in mobile collaboration

    Pros    

  • Expand the reach and equity of education

  • Facilitate personalized learning

  • Provide immediate feedback and assessment.

  • Enable anytime, anywhere learning

  • Ensure the productive use of time is spent in classrooms/workspace

  • Build new communities of learners/users/instructors;

  • Support situated learning

  • Enhance seamless learning

  • Bridge formal and informal learning

  • Minimizes educational disruption in conflict and disaster areas

  • Assists learners/users with disabilities

  • Improves communication and administration

  • Maximizes cost-efficiency

 

    According to Unesco, 2013 Policy Guidelines for Mobile Learning

    Cons    

  • Reading for long periods of time on the screen of mobile devices is tedious.

  • Easy to be distracted by social media and irrelevant information online

  • High requirements for learner’s autonomous ability

  • High dependence on devices themselves; without devices there is no learning

  • Requires initiative and responsibility for every member of the learning team

  • Requires techniques for using devices and technology-based learning platforms

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