Study Finds That US Students Increasingly Look To Mobile Devices As Learning Tools

As more and more young people in high school and even middle school find themselves in possession of cell phones, tablet computers and notebooks, it’s not surprising that the more enterprising students among them are using their mobile technology for learning applications whenever possible. Like every generation before them, teenagers are adept at jumping onto trends at their onset and don’t require nearly the learning curve that older adults do when it comes to appropriating new skills and technology.

A recent report we came across on Cellular-News.com highlights the growing popularity and zeal among young people to use their personal handheld devices for educational enrichment. The survey and report, created by the national education nonprofit known as Project Tomorrow as well as the learning management system company called Blackboard, reveals, among other details, that access to smartphones by American high school students has more than tripled since 2006. The survey report also declares that many students now consider their inability to use their own electronics devices in school as their primary barrier to a healthy digital education.

According to the report, “’We are beginning to see mobile learning take shape in pockets around the nation where a small but growing number of innovative educators are finding ways to leverage the once-banned mobile devices for learning,’ said Julie Evans, Chief Executive Officer of Project Tomorrow. ‘Educators have an opportunity to help students learn more effectively and deeply by leveraging students' preferred learning tools and strategies.’"

The survey report also goes on to discuss the shifting views of both parents and teachers when it comes to allowing the use of personal mobile devices for learning in the classroom, as well as the innovative edge some schools are developing as they make broader accommodations for Wi-Fi and technology-based education and enrichment. As Senior Vice President Brett Frazier of Blackboard explains in the article, “We see mobile as a transformative technology for engaging students. As these results show, educators and parents have an opportunity to leverage students' growing interest in mobile devices to engage them in a more personal learning experience that doesn't end when they leave the classroom."

To read the entire article about high school students and mobile learning interest, please click here. You can also learn more about mobile learning development from Designing Digitally, Inc. – one of core areas of expertise, as well.