GOING MOBILE:
Mobile Media Technologies and their Impact on Academic
Collaboration Beyond the Walls of the Classroom
Douglas W. Conrad
What action can I take to discover the impact of mobile media technologies on academic collaboration and communication beyond the walls of the classroom?
C Y C L E F O U R Report
PURPOSE
The purpose of this action research project was to discover the effect of mobile media technologies on the learning thought of as "informal” that happens in the spaces and times outside of the classroom. Current research has shown that the use of mobile media tools has begun to change our understanding of place. When we can communicate, collaborate and relate without the boundaries of time or space, our understanding of place or where we are grounded is altered. It is possible that this change can be leveraged by schools to incorporate the academic collaboration and knowledge building that happens beyond the walls of the classroom into the students' "formal" learning environment. The impact that mobile media technologies have in this space was the focus of this action research project.
ACTION
In this cycle 4 action, I added the action of including photos in the academic collaboration the students were engaged in with Twitter and Glassboard. The use guidelines added were to include at least one photo that helped illustrate an academic topic per week in Twitter and Glassboard discussions. Students were encouraged to add this action of including photos regularly to their discussions during this cycle. The evaluation of the action in this research was qualitative participant responses. I looked at how the students reflected on the action that we took together and noted the common themes in their experience with these mobile media technologies.The focus of the collaboration for these groups were stated to be related to their academic work in building knowledge in the areas they were working on together. The hypothesis was that combining text and images would allow students to bring the learning that took place in their informal learning environments back into the formal learning environment of the classroom.
The purpose of this action research project was to discover the effect of mobile media technologies on the learning thought of as "informal” that happens in the spaces and times outside of the classroom. Current research has shown that the use of mobile media tools has begun to change our understanding of place. When we can communicate, collaborate and relate without the boundaries of time or space, our understanding of place or where we are grounded is altered. It is possible that this change can be leveraged by schools to incorporate the academic collaboration and knowledge building that happens beyond the walls of the classroom into the students' "formal" learning environment. The impact that mobile media technologies have in this space was the focus of this action research project.
ACTION
In this cycle 4 action, I added the action of including photos in the academic collaboration the students were engaged in with Twitter and Glassboard. The use guidelines added were to include at least one photo that helped illustrate an academic topic per week in Twitter and Glassboard discussions. Students were encouraged to add this action of including photos regularly to their discussions during this cycle. The evaluation of the action in this research was qualitative participant responses. I looked at how the students reflected on the action that we took together and noted the common themes in their experience with these mobile media technologies.The focus of the collaboration for these groups were stated to be related to their academic work in building knowledge in the areas they were working on together. The hypothesis was that combining text and images would allow students to bring the learning that took place in their informal learning environments back into the formal learning environment of the classroom.
CYCLE RESEARCH QUESTION
If a Twitter channel is set up for one section of students and a Glassboard channel is set up in a second section of students and guidelines for using photos are included, how will these mobile media technologies impact academic collaboration beyond the walls of the classroom?
If a Twitter channel is set up for one section of students and a Glassboard channel is set up in a second section of students and guidelines for using photos are included, how will these mobile media technologies impact academic collaboration beyond the walls of the classroom?
EVIDENCE USED TO EVALUATE ACTION
4.1 Twitter user group key words tweeted
In this fourth and final cycle of my action research project, I continued with the same two groups from the previous cycle (one was a teacher credential students group and their two teachers using Twitter and one was an AV students group using Glassboard). I met with the faculty involved at the beginning of the cycle to plan for the action. The professors involved in the Twitter project were planning to present a paper on their part of this action research at a conference in April of this year. This added an extra level of engagement for these professors in the action. The two groups continued using the mobile tools in their academic collaborations outside the classroom with the inclusion of the use of pictures to convey ideas.
As a tech steward, my involvement was in the work to strategize with the users groups, help with the set up and implementation of the tools, guide the assessment and lead the reflection. I was not involved in the day-to-day Twitter or Glassboard conversations. To capture and assess the user group experience, I solicited responses to the same questions for both groups using a Surveymonkey poll and analyzed the data. It is the students’ response to their participation with these mobile media tools rather than their specific tweet-by-tweet discussions that I used to assess the action. Sample pictures were also coded and analyzed. Tweet Archive Twitter analysis app was used to show a sample of the academic collaboration topics during this cycle for the Twitter group. There were 16 students and two professors in the Twitter group and 7 students in the Glassboard group.
As a tech steward, my involvement was in the work to strategize with the users groups, help with the set up and implementation of the tools, guide the assessment and lead the reflection. I was not involved in the day-to-day Twitter or Glassboard conversations. To capture and assess the user group experience, I solicited responses to the same questions for both groups using a Surveymonkey poll and analyzed the data. It is the students’ response to their participation with these mobile media tools rather than their specific tweet-by-tweet discussions that I used to assess the action. Sample pictures were also coded and analyzed. Tweet Archive Twitter analysis app was used to show a sample of the academic collaboration topics during this cycle for the Twitter group. There were 16 students and two professors in the Twitter group and 7 students in the Glassboard group.
EVALUATION
4.2 Image of mobile phone group
Mobile media technologies refer to the specific devices (cell phones and Wi-Fi enabled tablets) as well as the Apps (Twitter, Glassboard etc.) that allow users to connect to and communicate with their world. Labeled as participatory technologies by some (Farkas, 2012), these tools may have the potential to enable a blurring of the lines between the formal and informal learning environments in our lives. The data gathered in this cycle shows how the inclusion of pictures in digital collaborations impacted academic collaboration beyond the walls of the classroom.
The 25 participants in this cycle used mobile media technologies that were originally designed for social communication, to work together on academic projects. The mobility of these tools was a good fit for their process as they were rarely in the same physical space at the same time. While they were able to connect using their laptops, the device of choice for these users was the smartphone. The web interface did allow for the 3 students who did not have a smartphone to participate in the discussions. The ubiquity of these mobile tools has been seen as a distraction in our learning environments as they are both a computer and a personal device that we all carry with us everywhere. Rather than turning these devices off or locking them away when they are brought into our learning environments, the data suggests the potential for strategic use of these devices in and out of the classroom. The chart below shows the mobile media platforms that the Twitter group used.
The 25 participants in this cycle used mobile media technologies that were originally designed for social communication, to work together on academic projects. The mobility of these tools was a good fit for their process as they were rarely in the same physical space at the same time. While they were able to connect using their laptops, the device of choice for these users was the smartphone. The web interface did allow for the 3 students who did not have a smartphone to participate in the discussions. The ubiquity of these mobile tools has been seen as a distraction in our learning environments as they are both a computer and a personal device that we all carry with us everywhere. Rather than turning these devices off or locking them away when they are brought into our learning environments, the data suggests the potential for strategic use of these devices in and out of the classroom. The chart below shows the mobile media platforms that the Twitter group used.
A major challenge to the adoption of smartphones in the formal learning environment of the classroom has been the social nature of these mobile media devices. The two-way communication that is inherent to mobile technologies has often worked against the top down delivery of the traditional classroom. In the less structured and informal learning that makes up the majority of our lives outside of the classroom, the sociality of learning is enhanced and encouraged by these tools. For educators to effectively strategize how to integrate these tools into the classroom, they will need to understand how they are used.
In this action research project, the majority of the participants (over 70%) felt that the ability to connect with each other using the mobile media devices enabled their work together. Although this was somewhat higher in the Twitter group, both groups appeared to value the social aspects of communication for these tools. Much like the automobile that was first designed to get us from one point to another, mobile media technologies are now much more about the value added to the journey than merely just arriving at a destination or just placing a call. Mobile media technologies like Twitter and Glassboard show the potential to be effective academic tools beyond their social nature. The survey data in the chart below shows information gathering and collaboration to be activities valued in the use of mobile technologies.
In this action research project, the majority of the participants (over 70%) felt that the ability to connect with each other using the mobile media devices enabled their work together. Although this was somewhat higher in the Twitter group, both groups appeared to value the social aspects of communication for these tools. Much like the automobile that was first designed to get us from one point to another, mobile media technologies are now much more about the value added to the journey than merely just arriving at a destination or just placing a call. Mobile media technologies like Twitter and Glassboard show the potential to be effective academic tools beyond their social nature. The survey data in the chart below shows information gathering and collaboration to be activities valued in the use of mobile technologies.
The addition of photos in this cycle highlighted one of the unique changes that mobile media use has been shown to bring about in our communication and learning, multiplicity of place (Squire, 2009). Multiplicity of place occurs when we are "present" in more than one physical space at a time. An example of this from this cycle of research was the teacher credential students who were rarely in the same physical space, but who were able to share the understandings of their individual experiences with pictures and Twitter messages. Mobile media tools allowed them to have a deeper understanding of their peers’ experience, basically bringing it into their own physical space. Another example is the Glassboard user group discussing topics remotely in more than one conversation thread at a time. This mobile type of multi-tasking can be a distraction in a learning environment by enabling students to attempt to focus on too many things at once, only to not really give their true focus to any of them. The challenge is to focus the use of these tools on areas that will benefit the learner and leverage the technology.
Twitter and Glassboard, micro-blogging tools that allow for text conversations that include photographs are like many other mobile media technologies in that the value for the student is in how the use is applied to the learning environment. If these devices are not strategically integrated into a student group’s academic plan, the inherent social nature of these tools will dominate and in many cases become a distraction in the class. If, as has been show in this cycle, students use these mobile media tools strategically in academic collaboration and information gathering, they show the potential for having a positive impact on the learning environment.
The students in this cycle added pictures to their Twitter academic discussions to communicate their experience and virtually bring their peers into the physical classrooms they ware doing their student teaching in. The chart below shows how pictures were used by the participants of this cycle.
Twitter and Glassboard, micro-blogging tools that allow for text conversations that include photographs are like many other mobile media technologies in that the value for the student is in how the use is applied to the learning environment. If these devices are not strategically integrated into a student group’s academic plan, the inherent social nature of these tools will dominate and in many cases become a distraction in the class. If, as has been show in this cycle, students use these mobile media tools strategically in academic collaboration and information gathering, they show the potential for having a positive impact on the learning environment.
The students in this cycle added pictures to their Twitter academic discussions to communicate their experience and virtually bring their peers into the physical classrooms they ware doing their student teaching in. The chart below shows how pictures were used by the participants of this cycle.
4.6 Image of work anywhere
In the cycle four photos, the coding of the picture description and context shows examples of how pictures were used in academic collaboration. The keywords describing the students' use of photographs were "teaching"' (40%), "learning" (36%) and "context" (32%). This points to the use of pictures to support and expand the collaborative work the participants of this research were engaged in. Over 70% felt that the inclusion of pictures was a strategic use of mobile media technologies in connecting their formal and informal learning environments. The mobility of these tools and their capability to enable users to communicate their experience of place has been shown to be an effective use of these academic technologies.
The two user groups found similar uses for pictures in their academic collaborations. The addition of pictures to their work together with Glassboard and Twitter were used by both the teaching credential students and the AV students group to describe and explain the context or place that they were physically working in. This allowed each group to work together remotely with a greater understanding of the specific place each were situated in. The lower percentage response for “clarify” may point to a deeper uses and meaning for pictures in these academic collaborations. The experience of these user groups in this cycle may point to the potential that mobile media technologies have for connecting the formal learning environment with the rest of our daily lives. It is no simple challenge to find ways to integrate these tools into the classroom, but the participants’ responses and their sample pictures point to the possibilities that exist in leveraging the value that mobile media technologies may provide.
The chart below shows the percentages of what the participants felt was the most effective way to integrate these devices into pedagogical strategies.
The two user groups found similar uses for pictures in their academic collaborations. The addition of pictures to their work together with Glassboard and Twitter were used by both the teaching credential students and the AV students group to describe and explain the context or place that they were physically working in. This allowed each group to work together remotely with a greater understanding of the specific place each were situated in. The lower percentage response for “clarify” may point to a deeper uses and meaning for pictures in these academic collaborations. The experience of these user groups in this cycle may point to the potential that mobile media technologies have for connecting the formal learning environment with the rest of our daily lives. It is no simple challenge to find ways to integrate these tools into the classroom, but the participants’ responses and their sample pictures point to the possibilities that exist in leveraging the value that mobile media technologies may provide.
The chart below shows the percentages of what the participants felt was the most effective way to integrate these devices into pedagogical strategies.
The data from this cycle offers a view of how mobile media technologies can be used to enhance academic collaboration outside of the classroom. The mobile phone, originally designed to enable greater communication, is now more about the value added to the experience than just connecting two or more people in a conversation. The benefit for education is in finding ways to utilize these devices in teaching instead of trying to find ways to stop them from being a distraction in the classroom. Mobile media technologies have become ubiquitous valued tools in our every day learning and collaboration and now are just beginning to find their place in forward thinking schools. The action from this action research project points to the potential for mobile media devices to have a positive impact on academic collaboration beyond the walls of the classroom. The Twitter and Glassboard users in this cycle found that their use of these tools showed great possibility to bring the learning experiences of students from their daily lives into the classroom and … to bring the learning experience of the classroom into their daily lives. Use of pictures, micro blogging, Augmented reality games and QR codes are just a few of the ways these tools can be strategically used. The automobile evolved from a simple transportation machine, to an enhanced vehicle for entertainment and discovery. Mobile media technologies that began as simple communication tools now are on a similar path with new ways to add value to the experience being discovered daily. The data from this cycle supports the view that mobile media technologies have a positive impact on academic collaboration outside of the classroom and points to the potential for these devices to be used to help blur the lines between the formal and informal learning environments.
REFLECTION
This research cycle has been a transforming experience for all involved. The faculty were inspired to do continued research in the use of mobile media technologies in and out of the classroom. The students discovered new channels for academic collaboration and knowledge building. My organization has become more open to further exploring the potential positive impacts of mobile media technologies and I have a greater sense of the place that learning theory has in stewarding a group in the connection of technology to pedagogical goals. My journal logs for this cycle show how these different aspects of the project combined to guide this action research.
4.8 Image of Twitter group professors
In this cycle and the one before, the faculty involved were fully engaged participants in the action and the research. In our meetings at the beginning of the action, they both had ideas for what we might try and were eager to bring this project to their students. Together, we set use guidelines that seemed to be appropriate for their students. In the actual action though, these faculty found more uses for the mobile media technologies (Twitter). The teaching credential students who were the participants in this cycle did not meet for class as they were all out interning in K-12 classrooms. Twitter messages including pictures were a main way of staying in touch and working together on academic projects. I feel that while this communication channel was helpful to the students' work, it also helped highlight the positive impact these technologies had on their work together outside of the classroom. The two faculty, inspired by what they saw transpiring with their students' Twitter use, submitted a paper to be considered for a presentation at the California Council on Teacher Education (CCTE) conference in San Jose in April. The paper was a reflection of what they had learned in the two cycles of action research along with some supporting documents from my own research. They ware selected for a poster session and a small group presentation. The response was encouraging to the faculty and their students who ware able to witness the impact of their learning experience on a wider audience. I feel that the success of this cycle of action was part the timing for these participants and part understanding how to fit the right tool to the pedagogical goals of the faculty and course.
The timing of using Twitter with pictures for these students was ideal as they were dispersed throughout the city teaching in different schools. The mobile media technology allowed them to continue their work together and bring the experiences they individually had, back to the group. The technology was a good fit for this group's teaching and learning goals in that it allowed them to communicate easily with brief comments and ideas while they were on the move between schools. Where the 140 character limitation of Twitter had not be useful for some groups in earlier cycles, this group found the boundary helpful. I feel that I learned how to listen more effectively to the goals and needs of faculty in this cycle and saw that reflect in smooth implementation and adoption of the appropriate mobile media technology. The ability to listen without prejudice is a helpful skill for those of us in technology support. I understand now the value of this as I go forward as a tech steward. The experiences of the previous cycles and participants prepared me for this work with these amazing educators and their students.
The timing of using Twitter with pictures for these students was ideal as they were dispersed throughout the city teaching in different schools. The mobile media technology allowed them to continue their work together and bring the experiences they individually had, back to the group. The technology was a good fit for this group's teaching and learning goals in that it allowed them to communicate easily with brief comments and ideas while they were on the move between schools. Where the 140 character limitation of Twitter had not be useful for some groups in earlier cycles, this group found the boundary helpful. I feel that I learned how to listen more effectively to the goals and needs of faculty in this cycle and saw that reflect in smooth implementation and adoption of the appropriate mobile media technology. The ability to listen without prejudice is a helpful skill for those of us in technology support. I understand now the value of this as I go forward as a tech steward. The experiences of the previous cycles and participants prepared me for this work with these amazing educators and their students.
4.9 Image of Westmont College
iPhone App icon
My school is a small (1200 students) Christian, residential, liberal arts college that is beginning to embrace new technologies. We have put our email in the cloud with Google, put our wireless network in the cloud with Meraki and developed our own individual and unique iPhone App. For all of this presence on the cutting edge, our faculty are still very conservative with regards to trying new things. This year is the first time that I have sensed that this is beginning to change even just a little. The work I have done with different teachers and students this year using Twitter and Glassboard have awakened the interest in an additional group of faculty. One of my stated goals for myself and the college in going through this Masters program was to develop more academic technology support for faculty and students. It could be that enough of the faculty have seen the advances of technology in their own lives and the successful implementations of their peers to begin to be willing to take a chance to try something new. I also believe that there are those who have been watching my journey with action research closely and now may see the value a project like this might bring for them and their students.
In the fall, one of our off campus programs will take only iPad mini tablets with them with all of their books and writing needs wrapped up in these portable mobile media devices. The process for research, discovery and implementation of the technology for this project is a direct result of the actions and reflections of this action research project. The use of these small WiFi enabled tablets will enable students to write, reflect on and capture their experiences to bring back to their learning community and then ultimately the college campus. I can now begin to see the ripples of activity from this process. When I plan and take action now in my digital habitat, I will recognize the wider implications for this action. Where I began this process with cycle one in July of last year with a narrow focus on using Twitter with classes, I now see the broader reach of the experience of these participants with mobile media technologies for our campus and higher ed as a whole.
In the fall, one of our off campus programs will take only iPad mini tablets with them with all of their books and writing needs wrapped up in these portable mobile media devices. The process for research, discovery and implementation of the technology for this project is a direct result of the actions and reflections of this action research project. The use of these small WiFi enabled tablets will enable students to write, reflect on and capture their experiences to bring back to their learning community and then ultimately the college campus. I can now begin to see the ripples of activity from this process. When I plan and take action now in my digital habitat, I will recognize the wider implications for this action. Where I began this process with cycle one in July of last year with a narrow focus on using Twitter with classes, I now see the broader reach of the experience of these participants with mobile media technologies for our campus and higher ed as a whole.
4.10 Image of Graziadio plaque at Pepperdine
I am a planner and a design thinker. I am most comfortable when I am in the middle of a process or project. I have learned in this cycle and my year long journey in the wilds of action research that sometimes the planning can get in the way of the process. Certainly being prepared is important and I feel like I learned a lot about how to help faculty and students prepare for adopting a new technology, but the true value in this research came from the times when I stepped back and let it happen. In this cycle, I feel good about the balance I was able to find between a level of control of the action and a sensitivity to the needs of the participants to bring their own identity to the process of discovery. From a social constructivist theory perspective, students need the space to develop an ownership of the learning process. The faculty and I gave the students guidelines for use of the mobile media tools, but they adapted the use to their specific situations. I gained a deeper understanding of what Lev Vygotsky was talking about in his research on Zones of Proximal Development (ZPD) from my participation with these students. In the planning I did with the teachers, we focused on the quantity of Tweets per week, but it was the students who brought the focus to the quality of the discussions. Their academic collaborations using Twitter and Glassboard involved a sharing of experiences and knowledge that impacted the actions of their peers. The mobility of these tools allowed their ZPD to be not constrained by physical space or time. I know that I will still try to plan and direct future projects, but feel I understand the importance of listening to and working with the specific needs of the faculty and students I will work with. They need support and guidance when implementing new technologies but for tools or academic strategies to be a good fit, I will apply what I learned in this research cycle and allow room for application of the individual experiences of the participants to impact the process. Understanding the learning theory behind the process helps me seek the balance between planning and flexibility. I know that I am a more discerning tech steward because of the experiences of this cycle and will continue to grow in my knowledge of how people perceive knowledge, how they learn and how they asses value as mobile media technologies expand their positive impact on teaching and learning.
4.11 Image of Ferrari California
Mobile media technologies are vehicles for communication. The metaphor for the context of this research on the impacts of mobile media technologies on education is the automobile. I feel that this helps explain how mobile media technologies are evolving and how we can understand how to utilize these tools in education. The automobile was originally designed as a substitute for the horse drawn carriage. It was hoped that it would provide a more convenient and dependable way for folks to travel. Over the years, many technological advancements changed the automobile from just a transportation machine, to an entertainment vehicle. Modern suspension, more powerful engines, audiophile stereos, GPS systems and computers monitoring many of the functions have made the automobile's value much more about the quality of the journey than just merely arriving at the destination. With all these advancements though, the automobile will always be viewed in part as a transportation machine.
Mobile media technologies have followed a similar design path. The telephone was originally designed as a substitute for the telegraph. It was hoped that it would provide a more convenient and dependable way for folks to communicate. Over the years, many technological advancements have changed the telephone from just a communication tool to a highly powered entertainment and computing device. Modern wireless connectivity untethered the telephone and brought a new mobility to our communications. Bluetooth, digital cameras, internet access, extended battery life, audiophile stereo capabilities, ever increasing memory and cloud computing have made the mobile phone's value much more about the quality of the journey than merely enabling people to talk to each other. With all of these advancements though, mobile media technologies will always be viewed in part as social communication devices. Much like the automobile that was first designed just to get us from one point to another, mobile media technologies are now much more defined by the value added to the journey of communication than merely just arriving at a destination. To drive the strategic use of these tools in education, the focus needs to be on the aspects that enhance the journey of learning. Picture taking and sharing, real time information search, immediate communication and GPS capabilities enable these devices to change our understanding of place. The computing horse power and connection speed of these devices offer the potential to transport learners beyond the innate social nature of these tools, to realize a new learning ecology where students are more personally involved in knowledge building and acquisition than ever before.
In this cycle of action research, I have come to a better understanding of how these powerful mobile media tools can be integrated into the learning environment. By recognizing the innate social nature of these tools, we can be in a good position to understand how to minimize the distraction to the classroom and build upon the strengths of these tools. While we are strategizing ways to integrate their powerful computing and Audio Video capabilities, mobile media technologies are already having a positive impact on our learning beyond the walls of the classroom. I have learned a great deal about these technologies and about how I can be a more effective technology steward in my digital habitat from the experience of this cycle.
Mobile media technologies have followed a similar design path. The telephone was originally designed as a substitute for the telegraph. It was hoped that it would provide a more convenient and dependable way for folks to communicate. Over the years, many technological advancements have changed the telephone from just a communication tool to a highly powered entertainment and computing device. Modern wireless connectivity untethered the telephone and brought a new mobility to our communications. Bluetooth, digital cameras, internet access, extended battery life, audiophile stereo capabilities, ever increasing memory and cloud computing have made the mobile phone's value much more about the quality of the journey than merely enabling people to talk to each other. With all of these advancements though, mobile media technologies will always be viewed in part as social communication devices. Much like the automobile that was first designed just to get us from one point to another, mobile media technologies are now much more defined by the value added to the journey of communication than merely just arriving at a destination. To drive the strategic use of these tools in education, the focus needs to be on the aspects that enhance the journey of learning. Picture taking and sharing, real time information search, immediate communication and GPS capabilities enable these devices to change our understanding of place. The computing horse power and connection speed of these devices offer the potential to transport learners beyond the innate social nature of these tools, to realize a new learning ecology where students are more personally involved in knowledge building and acquisition than ever before.
In this cycle of action research, I have come to a better understanding of how these powerful mobile media tools can be integrated into the learning environment. By recognizing the innate social nature of these tools, we can be in a good position to understand how to minimize the distraction to the classroom and build upon the strengths of these tools. While we are strategizing ways to integrate their powerful computing and Audio Video capabilities, mobile media technologies are already having a positive impact on our learning beyond the walls of the classroom. I have learned a great deal about these technologies and about how I can be a more effective technology steward in my digital habitat from the experience of this cycle.