Supporting university students’ learning across time and space: a from-scratch, personalised and mobile-friendly approach

IF 3.5 Q1 EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH
Eliza Rossiter, T. Thomson, Rachel Fitzgerald
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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Purpose The purpose of this study is to evaluate the use and effectiveness of a bespoke mobile learning resource, Pocket Tutor. This resource responds to a number of teaching and learning challenges within the tertiary education context. These include those related to the number and type of learning activities that can be offered, class pacing, subject-specific content considerations and the availability and quality of off-the-shelf learning resources. Educators have to potentially contend with all of these amidst mounting institutional constraints and external pressures. Yet, a supplemental, from-scratch online learning resource can help mitigate some of these challenges. Design/methodology/approach This study presents the successes and challenges of introducing a mobile learning resource, Pocket Tutor, to bolster autonomous learning in a supported university learning environment. Pocket Tutor was designed and developed in 2019 and integrated in 2020 and 2021 into a multimedia design class offered at a large university in the Asia-Pacific. The resource’s effectiveness is measured against common technology acceptance factors – including self-efficacy, enthusiasm and enjoyment in relation to contextual purpose and class learning outcomes – through a multi-pronged approach consisting of a class-wide survey, developed specifically for this purpose and analysis of usage data. Deeper context was also provided through a small pool of follow-up interviews. Findings Evidence from this study’s data suggests that a bespoke, mobile-learning resource can provide greater consistency, more relevance, more flexibility for when and where students learn and more efficiency with limited opportunities for synchronous interaction. At the same time, a bespoke mobile-learning resource represents a significant investment of skill and time to develop and maintain. Originality/value This study responds to calls from scholars who argue that more research (especially that is qualitative and discipline-specific) is needed to investigate students’ willingness to use learning apps on their mobile devices. This study pairs such research about student willingness with actual usage data and student reflections to more concretely address the role of mobile learning resources in higher education contexts. This study also, importantly, does not just assess perceptions and attitudes about mobile learning resources in the abstract but assesses attitudes and usage patterns for specific generic and bespoke mobile learning resources available for students in a specific university class (thereby providing discipline-specific insights). This study also provides a unique contribution by including multiple years of data and, thus, offers a longitudinal view on how mobile-learning resources are perceived and used in a particular higher education context.
支持大学生跨越时间和空间的学习:一种从头开始、个性化和移动友好的方法
目的本研究的目的是评估定制移动学习资源Pocket Tutor的使用和有效性。这一资源应对了高等教育背景下的一些教学挑战。其中包括与可提供的学习活动的数量和类型、课堂节奏、特定主题的内容考虑以及现成学习资源的可用性和质量有关的内容。教育工作者必须在不断增加的制度约束和外部压力中应对所有这些。然而,一个补充的、从头开始的在线学习资源可以帮助缓解其中的一些挑战。设计/方法论/方法本研究介绍了引入移动学习资源Pocket Tutor以在支持的大学学习环境中支持自主学习的成功和挑战。Pocket Tutor于2019年设计和开发,并于2020年和2021年整合到亚太地区一所大型大学开设的多媒体设计课程中。资源的有效性是根据常见的技术接受因素来衡量的,包括与情境目的和课堂学习结果相关的自我效能、热情和享受,通过多管齐下的方法,包括专门为此目的开发的全班调查和使用数据的分析。还通过一小部分后续访谈提供了更深入的背景。发现来自这项研究数据的证据表明,定制的移动学习资源可以在学生学习的时间和地点提供更大的一致性、相关性、灵活性,并在同步互动机会有限的情况下提高效率。同时,定制的移动学习资源代表着开发和维护技能和时间的重大投资。原创性/价值这项研究回应了学者们的呼吁,他们认为需要更多的研究(尤其是定性和特定学科的研究)来调查学生在移动设备上使用学习应用程序的意愿。本研究将这种关于学生意愿的研究与实际使用数据和学生反思相结合,以更具体地解决移动学习资源在高等教育环境中的作用。同样重要的是,这项研究不仅抽象地评估了对移动学习资源的看法和态度,还评估了特定大学班级学生可使用的特定通用和定制移动学习资源(从而提供特定学科的见解)的态度和使用模式。这项研究还通过纳入多年的数据做出了独特的贡献,从而提供了一个关于移动学习资源在特定高等教育背景下如何被感知和使用的纵向视角。
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来源期刊
Interactive Technology and Smart Education
Interactive Technology and Smart Education EDUCATION & EDUCATIONAL RESEARCH-
CiteScore
12.00
自引率
2.30%
发文量
30
期刊介绍: Interactive Technology and Smart Education (ITSE) is a multi-disciplinary, peer-reviewed journal, which provides a distinct forum to specially promote innovation and participative research approaches. The following terms are defined, as used in the context of this journal: -Interactive Technology refers to all forms of digital technology, as described above, emphasizing innovation and human-/user-centred approaches. -Smart Education "SMART" is used as an acronym that refers to interactive technology that offers a more flexible and tailored approach to meet diverse individual requirements by being “Sensitive, Manageable, Adaptable, Responsive and Timely” to educators’ pedagogical strategies and learners’ educational and social needs’. -Articles are invited that explore innovative use of educational technologies that advance interactive technology in general and its applications in education in particular. The journal aims to bridge gaps in the field by promoting design research, action research, and continuous evaluation as an integral part of the development cycle of usable solutions/systems.
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