Increasing Access, Social Inclusion, and Quality Through Mobile Learning

Abstract

Mobile learning is part of a new learning landscape created by the availability of technologies and increasing digitization. As the use of mobile technology has increased worldwide, interest has grown in its potential for supporting flexible, accessible, and personalized education. As a result, higher education is facing a variety of challenges both now and in the coming decade (2020–2030) because of the continuing advances in technological development and digitization. Daily life, school, and work have become mobile. Moreover, the digitalized society fosters digital citizenship. Students entering higher education today have grown up using the internet and mobile devices. Universities need to offer a mix of face-to-face and online learning possibilities, such as open educational resources (OER) and massive open online courses (MOOC), which allow individuals to access education anywhere, anytime, and through any device. This article focuses on mobile learning (m-learning) in open learning educational contexts and quality enhancement in mobile learning in higher education. The article starts by defining mobile learning and the usefulness of m-learning in education, followed by some examples of mobile devices and a discussion of the principles of mobile learning. Examples of mobile learning design are then presented. Next, the advantages and uses of mobile learning in education are discussed. Because the issue of quality in e-learning and mobile learning is complex, this article focuses on course design, learning design, media design, and content. Additional dimensions of quality are security, accessibility, interactivity, flexibility, personalization, mobile devices, and their interfaces. Moreover, concepts such as personal learning and social innovation in relation to mobile learning are discussed. In the concluding section, future challenges are discussed.