Introduction
Mobile learning is a relatively new study area founded effectively and efficiently integrating mobile computing and digital learning technologies. Now more than ever, learners are able to acquire knowledge at any time and from any place. Thus, mobile learning has revolutionized the era of digital learning, making it easier for learners to socialize and get education. Mobile systems have been incorporated gradually into learning frameworks. The evolution of smartphones and innovations in mobile applications has boosted innovation growth and, by extension, improved digital learning. The technology could not have been revolutionized or be realized without the advent of mobile computing applications. Mobile devices hold a lot of prospects. There is so much that can be done with mobile devices other than merely using them for informal interactions. By using mobile devices, learning can continue uninterrupted outside the confines of a physical classroom. However, these devices must be used with restrain since they are addictive and might divert one from concentrating on what is essential as far as learning is concerned. Learners must choose the information they use very carefully to avoid the use of wrong or fake news. This paper discusses mobile learning, the various types used in education, its benefits, and the role that technology can play in mathematics learning.
Define mobile learning
Mobile learning or m-learning can be defined as learning through the internet or a network connection using personal mobile devices. These devices may include tablets and smartphones to attain educational material through online learning systems, mobile applications, and social interactions and forums. M-learning is flexible and allows learners to access affordable and accessible education at any time and from any place. Institutions are increasingly advocating for mobile devices both for easier access and retrieval of learning materials. As mobile and wireless communication technologies continue to grow, the use of portable devices in education systems is gaining popularity each day. Thus, it is a brand new technology in parts of training, education, and learning. The use of phones has grown rapidly due to various reasons, such as a decrease in smartphones’ prices, which makes them more accessible. According to Sung et al. (2016), as technology progresses, the concept of portability becomes a significant trend. In the recent past, education and its delivery have never been thought to be technologically mobile. However, mobile learning has been brought to reality through technology. Universities, colleges, and other learning institutions are currently taking their service delivery to the next level. With the introduction of mobile phones, smartphones, and tablets with high internet connectivity, it is no longer a need walking around with laptops containing training and learning materials. Thus, like many business organizations, universities and colleges are hiring mobile application developers to create applications capable of running on mobile phones as a package for delivering their services (Heflin et al., 2017).
Types of mobile learning
According to Park (2011), there are different four types of mobile learning, which include high transactional distance socialized mobile learning, high transactional distance individualized mobile learning, low transactional distance socialized mobile learning, and low transactional distance individualized mobile learning. Learners accessing the university library resources through university library applications is an example of the mobile application in education. In this article, Park begins by explaining how educators and instructional specialists have found mobile technology to be more critical equipment for learners and the way it has assimilated them into the setting of distance learning. He states that there hasn’t been enough research done to categorize the various instances of this learning technology in the distance learning environment. This article further discusses other distance learning approaches while comparing them to mobile learning, such as e-learning and u-learning. The author describes the technical characteristics and the mobile learning educational affordances given in the past researches. Reports released in 2010 indicated that apart from the mobile applications on mobile phones being engaging and keeping individuals busy, they are educative in some ways. Also, as stated by Bidin and Ziden (2013), children from pre-school enjoy doing their homework more on their mobile devices than through textbooks and exercise books. The concept of the application being engaging does reading and researching outside the school environment enjoyable for the students at different levels. According to research conducted by Pedro et al. (2018), students in their eighth grade revealed that the students were more comfortable doing their assignments on their tablets and submitting through the school assignment submission application that they would enjoy being in their teacher’s presence. Again, the development of mobile applications for mobile learning helps in the establishment of an all the time interaction and sharing among the students. According to Sonmez et al. (2018), the concept of mobile applications for mobile learning help solves the problem of learning materials getting old and outdated very fast. Storing the materials in a digital format ensures their safety from physical disasters. In addition, it gives the student twenty-four hours in seven days of access to the learning materials without any form of movement involved. The synchronization of school information and home is a critical element of the mobile learning application. The monitoring of learners is easy for the parents as they do not have to be in school to follow up on the student’s performance. In most cases, mobile learning devices are mainly integrated into the learning process to strengthen engagement, motivation, and a secondary delivery tool.
Advantages related to m-learning
There are various advantages related to m-learning, including information accessibility where students can learn at any time and from any place leading to better course completion rates. The innovation enables students’ flexibility by eliminating the need for education to happen at a given venue and on a schedule (Sonmez et al., 2018). Thus, the technology takes learning flexibility to a whole new level by the use of podcasts, videos, presentations, and other multimedia content on both smartphones and other portable devices. Learners have the added advantage of accessing this content at any time and from any place at their schedule. Therefore, mobile learning has led to a seamless integration of learning into students’ routines, resulting in their coursework. Mobile learning has been enhanced due to the bite-sized delivery of knowledge that enables students to learn faster through mobile phones. Information and learning materials can be compressed and presented in a concise manner that students are able to remember easily. In this regard, mobile learning has made information readily available, especially when needed for ongoing on-the-job training (Caldwell, 2018). This bite-sized delivery helps avoid cognitive overload and increase the rate of learning and understanding. In addition, students are able to improve knowledge retention and their ability to recall information (Kattayat et al., 2017). Mobile learning has enabled learners to improve retaining knowledge levels because most of them are likely to remember concise information and data when needed, which they find relevant and relatable. Thus, many students are able to recall information while working and performing their tasks to the best of their ability seeing that they have committed the subject matter to their long-term memories. Also, learning materials have been made available, leading to more customized learning that leads to higher student engagement rates and responsive design that enables easy adoption and future-proofing of the content. With the increase in the use of smartphones, most people, including learners, prefer to use their mobile devices to consume content. According to statistics, over 80% of the world population used smartphones (Elkhateeb et al., 2019). This pattern has enabled institutions and learners to collaborate and utilize mobile learning to benefit from its opportunity.
Use of mobile learning in mathematics
Mobile learning facilitates students with various science concepts. According to Lim and Churchill (2016), smartphones, laptops, and online systems equip students with concepts such as data collection, data analysis, probability, and statistics, which form the central themes in mathematics. The use of mobile learning in mathematics has been boosted because mathematic forms the basis of most science subjects. However, according to Drigas and Pappas (2015), mobile technologies and mobile learning, in general, have been underutilized in the teaching of mathematics and science education. Mathematics is considered a demanding and challenging subject. By using mobile technology, which is most preferred by students, instructors can teach mathematical concepts in a step-by-step manner through multimedia tools like videos, e-books, podcasts, and presentations that students can access at their own time. Technology allows students to learn at their pace. To give an example, if a student did not understand a mathematical concept, they could review the same notes using their mobile devices at home as many times as they wish. This ensures that students who are not able to grasp concepts very fast are not left behind.
Conclusion
In conclusion, the paper has defined mobile learning, highlighted the various types of mobile learning used in education, outlined the different benefits offered by mobile learning to students, and finally described the role that mobile learning can play in mathematics learning. Learners are able to learn from any place and at any time, which ensures that they complete their courses. The use of mobile learning enables students to retain more knowledge due to data and information’s conciseness and improve their level of recalling information. Mobile learning and ensures that learning materials are available when needed. This gives the instructors a lot of options on how they can customize different learning content, thereby leading to a higher rate of student engagement. Finally, learners can use mobile learning to learn mathematical concepts that are hard to grasp, such as probability and statistics, among others. This paper has established that as much as mobile learning has been applied in many education, it has not been exhaustively used in mathematics teaching and learning. Therefore, in the future, researchers should look into why the teaching of mathematics has not been sufficiently implemented through mobile learning.
References
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