What comes to mind when you hear the term mobile learning (aka mlearning)?  When I hear the term I think of active movement, that the learning itself is on the move and not stationary.  But I am curious as to how other instructors and instructional designers understand the concept.  In order to find out what others think I decided to sign up for a mlearning and instructional design class through the Canvas Network as a way to join a larger community of instructors and instructional designers and engage in discussions on how technology can be used in the classroom.  As part of course activities I will blog my musings on the course and share new ideas as they come up.

I am almost finished with week 1 of the course and I have learned that the course is using The eLearning Guild‘s definition of mlearning: “Any activity that allows individuals to be more productive when consuming, interacting with, or creating information, mediated through a compact digital portable device that the individual carries on a regular basis, has reliable connectivity, and fits in a pocket or purse.”

I found this to be a curious definition because although it mentions using a device that is carried on a regular basis it makes no mention of in what location or when the activity is being completed.  Does this mean that mlearning can take place in a F2F course as long as students are using small mobile devices?  (vs. being out in the field or a course not having a specific physical meeting location) I must admit if that is the case I am a bit disappointed as I had hoped for a course that would stretch my skills on what it means to use technology for teaching and learning.  On the flip side, if all I need to do is use small mobile devices in my classroom than mlearning is already an option incorporated into my current learning environment.  I require the use of a mobile device by each student – they have the choice of using a laptop, tablet, or smartphone.  I do not require mlearning, so to speak, because I like students to have the flexibility in what they use.  And given that they are coming to a set location there are minimal issues with carrying a laptop versus a smartphone.

I would like to go beyond thinking of mlearning in a F2F setting and consider what it means for an online course that has both synchronous and asynchronous activities.  In order to do that I feel I need to step outside of my comfort zone of always using a laptop and start to use my tablet or smartphone more in my daily life.  As I type this blog post I am using my laptop so there is change #1 that I need to make.  All blog posts going forward need to be done with the WordPress app.  If I want to incorporate mlearning I need to experience mlearning!