Topic : Relevance of Computing Devices to Improve Educational Outcomes in Higher education sector

Abstract

Mobile devices are becoming essential element in the world today. With the power of portable computing in the hands of everyone and anyone, the time has come to consider using mobile devices for education. While ICT in education has been trialed, results have been mixed. Mobile devices are also ICT devices, so why should we still consider using mobile devices in education and what is its potential impact on the stakeholders. This paper provides an overview of what is out there and explores the opportunities and issues in regards to using mobile devices in education.

Mobile devices are already being used by educational institutions in many countries. What type of technology, content, and mobile devices are currently being experimented with? What are the results in terms of student learning outcomes? What do the teachers think? Are the other stakeholders in education satisfied? We look at reports and reflections from several implementations of using mobile devices in education to learn from and move forward. Regardless of many brilliant anecdotes about using mobile devices in education, mobile devices after all are ICT devices that contain fragile electronic components, need power to operate and connectivity for access. A lot has been learnt from ICT deployment in education and improved upon. However, it is to be noted that fully realized potential of any mobile device and its use in education is entirely dependent upon electrical power, network connectivity and user competency.

Keywords: Mobile phones; mobile learning; information and communication technologies; Learning Management systems