Augmented Strategies for Mobile and Ubiquitous Learning Technologies

Abstract

Today’s students are growing up in a world where technologies are becoming a natural part of their life. Continuing advances in emerging technologies such as mobile devices, give students more control to access digital learning contents and sharing knowledge. A mobile device such as smartphones is considered a great tool to be used for learning, it provides learners a new opportunity for interaction with peers, teachers, and tutors, and improve learning environments for more creativity and engagements. Additionally, wireless learning devices can be used to help students learn and develop twenty-first-century skills (e.g., critical thinking, collaboration, communication, social skills, and leadership, etc.). Each one of these reported skills has always been necessary to be acquired for helping students to keep up with unprecedented global changes to enable them to participate actively in a rapidly changing society. However, the integration of mobile devices into the learning process is becoming more important than ever. On the other hand, the growing rapid globalized changing conditions have made a huge paradigm shift in school systems face-to-face classroom to more convenient and seamless learning, where learning could be accessible at any time and anywhere. Thus, school systems globally have additional burdens that require them to work under increasing pressure for preparing the younger generation to become active and contribute better in their future careers. In particular, school’s responsibility is to work for cultivating desired skills which enable students to succeed and sustaining success in modern work environments as well as overcoming challenges that expected to encounter in digital societies. These changing conditions have been encouraged researchers to investigate effective learning strategies to leverage ubiquitous and mobile technologies for increasing student’s motivation and promote their levels of attention and engagement. Moreover, precisely researchers have focused to examine the impact of implementing strategies supplemented with technology tools in scenario-based learning environment on students learning and performance, which is embedded multiple stages including guidance, technique and train students to perform learning activities under specific environmental conditions. The aim of this chapter is to discuss effective learning approaches based mobile devices that have been implemented inside the classroom and beyond, regardless of subjects area. This chapter investigates a variety of studies in the light of more recent innovative and best practices of augmented learner-centered strategies using for creating knowledge in mobile and ubiquitous learning events. The chapter offers to understand the popular feature of core aspects of wireless communication technology facilitating teaching and learning practice, affordances of mobile and ubiquitous technologies that benefit a variety of learning aspects, and what teachers do when using these latest emerging technologies for teaching. Considering the impact of emerging technology is changing the way teacher teach and the student learns, lead to think of new pedagogy; however, the chapter draws attention to the challenges of determining appropriate pedagogy to align with rapidly emerging technologies. Suggestions and main ideas that conclude with current issues for future research are provided.