Abstract
This paper explores how a group of undergraduate students in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) use their mobile phones to perform informal learning activities related to the content of their courses outside the classroom. The paper also addresses the usefulness of informal learning activities to support students’ learning. The study adopts an exploratory case study design and uses multiple methods of data collection including questionnaires, interviews and diary entries. Main findings suggest that students performed informal learning activities mostly from home, interacting mainly with classmates. It also shows that students were in control of their informal learning activities without teachers’ input. However, it was found that students used only a limited number of applications but these were considered useful to their learning. The paper contributes to a discussion of the implications of training and instructor support to help students to take more advantage of mobile phone applications to support informal learning. Recommendations for further research are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Billing, S. (2009). UAE mobile phone growth seen slowing in 2009. http://www.arabianbusiness.com/551177-uae-mobile-phone-growth-seen-slowing-in-2009. Accessed 15 August 2009.
Bradley, C., & Holley, D. (2010). An analysis of first-year business students’ mobile phones and their use for learning. In Proceedings of The 17th Association for Learning Technology Conference (ALT-C 2010). University of Nottingham, UK, 7–9 September.
Brandt, E., Hillgren, P., & Bjorgvinsson, E. (2003). Self-produced video to augment peer-to-peer learning. In Proceedings of Mlearn 2003 Learning with Mobile Devices. 19–20 May, London.
Cheung, W., & Hew, K. (2009). A review of research methodologies used in studies on mobile handheld devices in K-12 and higher education settings. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 25(2), 153–183.
Churchill, D., & Churchill, N. (2008). Educational affordances of PDAs: a study of a teacher’s exploration of this technology. Computers & Education, 50, 1439–1450.
Clough, G. (2005). The uses of PDAs and Smartphones for informal learning. MSc Thesis. UK: Open University.
Clough, G., Jones, A., McAndrew, P., & Scanlon, E. (2008). Informal learning with PDAs and Smarphones. Journal of Computer Assisted Learning, 24(5), 359–371.
Clough, G., Jones, A., McAndrew, P., & Scanlon, E. (2009). Informal learning in online communities of mobile devices enthusiasts. In M. Ally (Ed.), Mobile learning: Transforming the delivery of education and training (pp. 100–112). Athabasca: Athabasca University Press.
Cohen, L., Manion, L., & Morrison, K. (2007). Research methods in education (6th ed.). London: Routledge.
Cook, J., Pachler, N., & Bradley, C. (2008). Bridging the gap? Mobile phones at the interface between formal and informal learning. Journal of the Research Center for Educational Technology, 4(1), 3–18.
Deepwell, F., & Malik, S. (2008). On campus, but out of class: an investigation into students’ experiences of learning technologies in their self-directed study. ALT-J—Research in Learning Technology, 16(1), 5–14.
Jokisalo, E. & Riu, A. (2009). Informal learning in the era of Web 2.0. http://www.elearningeuropa.info/files/media/media19656.pdf. Accessed 3 July 2010.
Kukulska-Hulme, A., & Pettit, J. (2009). Practitioners as innovators: Emergent practice in personal mobile teaching, learning, work and leisure. In M. Ally (Ed.), Mobile learning: Transforming the delivery of education and training (pp. 135–155). Athabasca: Athabasca University Press.
Kukulska-Hulme, A., Sharples, M., Milrad, M., Arnedillo-Sánchez, I., & Vavoula, G. (2009). Innovation in mobile learning: a European perspective. International Journal of Mobile and Blended Learning, 1(1), 12–35.
Laurillard, D. (2007). Pedagogical forms for mobile learning. Framing research questions. http://eprints.ioe.ac.uk/627/1/Mobile_C6_Laurillard.pdf. Accessed 20 August 2009.
Livingstone, D. (2000). Exploring the icebergs of adult learning. http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/depts/sese/csew/nall/res/cjsaem.pdf. Accessed 10 March 2009.
Looi, C., Seow, P., Zhang, B., So, H., Chen, W., & Wong, L. (2010). Leveraging mobile technology for sustainable seamless learning: a research agenda. British Journal of Educational Technology, 41(2), 154–169.
Lynn, D. (1991). The application of case study evaluations. http://PAREonline.net/getvn.asp?v=2&n=9. Accessed February 5 2011.
Mann, S. (2008). The Emergence of Mobile Devices Influencing Learning from the Viewpoint of Convergences. In Proceedings of Wireless, Mobile, and Ubiquitous Technology in Education. Fifth IEEE International Conference (pp. 191–193). Sydney, Australia. 23–26 March.
Padgett, D. (1998). Qualitative methods in social work research: Challenges and rewards. London: Sage.
Patten, B., Arnedillo-Sánchez, I., & Tangney, B. (2006). Designing collaborative, constructionist and contextual applications for handheld devices. Computers & Education, 46(3), 294–308.
Pettit, J., & Kukulska-Hulme, A. (2007). Going with the grain: mobile devices in practice. Australasian Journal of Educational Technology, 23(1), 17–33.
Pierroux, P. (2008). Extending meaning from museum visits through the use of wikis and mobile blogging. Conference paper at International Perspectives in the Learning Sciences (ICLS 2008), Utrecht.
Santos, I. (2010). Finding opportunities to use SMS in the classroom. In Proceeding of IADIS Mobile Learning International Conference (pp. 45–52), Porto, Portugal, 19–21 March.
Scanlon, E., Jones, A. & Waycott, J. (2005) Mobile technologies: prospects for their use in learning in informal science settings. Journal of Interactive Media in Education, 25.
Sefton-Green, J. (2004). Literature review in informal learning with technology outside school. http://www.futurelab.org.uk/resources/documents/lit_reviews/Informal_Learning_Review.pdf. Accessed 5 May 2009.
Sharples, M., Milrad, M., Arnedillo-Sánchez, I., & Vavoula, G. (2007). Mobile learning: Small devices, big issues. http://telearn.noe-kaleidoscope.org/warehouse/KAL_Legacy_Mobile_Learning_(001143v1).pdf. Accessed 15 June 2009.
Thornton, P., & Houser, C. (2004). Using mobile phones in education, In Proceedings of the 2nd IEEE International Workshop on Wireless and Mobile Technologies in Education (WMTE’04) (pp. 2–10), Taiwan.
Traxler, J. (2009). Current state of mobile learning. In M. Ally (Ed.), Mobile Learning: Transforming the delivery of education and training (pp. 9–24). Athabasca: Athabasca University Press.
Vavoula, G. (2004). KleOS: A knowledge and learning organisation system in support of lifelong learning. PhD Thesis. UK: University of Birmingham.
Vavoula, G., & McAndrew, P. (2005). A study of mobile learning practices. http://www.mobilearn.org/download/results/public_deliverables/MOBIlearn_D4.4_Final.pdfMOBIlearn. Accessed 10 January 2010.
Vavoula, G., Sharples, M., Rudman, P., Lonsdale, P., & Meeket, J. (2007). Learning bridges: A role for mobile technologies in education. http://telearn.noe-kaleidoscope.org/open-archive/file?ETMagazine_SUBMITTED (001557v1).pdf. Accessed 5 March 2010.
Yin, R. (2003). Applications of case study research (2nd ed.). London: Sage Publications.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Santos, I.M., Ali, N. Exploring the uses of mobile phones to support informal learning. Educ Inf Technol 17, 187–203 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-011-9151-2
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10639-011-9151-2