Clark, the terms in your definition all seem to focus on the features rather than the benefits of the device. And one of the features depends on what you are wearing at the time — if I have a purse then an iPad is mobile, if I’m wearing cargo pants then a mini iPad is mobile, if I’m wearing slacks and have no purse then only my iPhone is mobile.
To me the defining benefit is will the device allow me to access the tools I require in order to acquire the information and create the material I need so that I can remain productive when I’m away from my home/office?
I’ve learned a lot from your posts and books Clark, thank you for sharing so much.
These days I tend to avoid defining mobile by either device (e.g. size or features, which is getting harder to define) or context (e.g. on the go, which is often not true). My current preferred way of framing mobile is to use phrases such as “mobile means close at hand” or “mobile means being available”. I look forward to any comments that you may have.
Donald, defining it by access of tools is a good post-hoc analysis, but I’m trying to assist folks being predictive. Jay Cross made a similar case to me talking about how a traveling salesman with a laptop in his car with tools of the moment is similarly using his laptop as mobile support. To me it seems more like a mobile device rather than mlearning. I think the other thing is not the context, but which device do you really have with you *all* the time? My tablet isn’t it, my phone is.
Paul, thanks for the kind words. And it definitely is the ‘is it at hand’ question. I think most folks always have their phone with them, and a few may always have their tablet with them. If you provide a device, whatever it is, it’s always with them ‘at the work context’ (e.g. iPad for hospital/plane, phone for sales folks).
Clark, I tend to agree with you on this. In work scenarios a tablet would probably be considered mobile for most folks.
Though the difficult part is – as you said – it is a moving target. We will continue to challenge our own definitions as the devices evolve constantly. Convertibles and hybrids are here while flexible screens & wearable is the next stage of evolution for mobile devices. Thanks for sharing.
Clark, great voice of reason. I have found past debates of this topic excruciating. To the outside world they will be as useful as deciding how many angels can balance on the head of a pin. By contrast your definition hits the spot. Now let’s move on and put these things to work!
Clark, I find this conversation most interesting, but I’m still lost on a couple of the concepts – mobility and context.
While some people may need to be able to stand while using their device, a cop on a walking beat comes to mind, how many workers really need that affordance? I can’t recall a recent experience in my work in which I needed to stand (I’m a one person shop who has a home office and meet clients at local coffee shops or their place of business).
If a person goes to a coffee shop and while standing in line to order her coffee ask a question and receives an answer through Twitter by using her smartphone, then the consensus seems to be that she is mlearning. But if she uses her laptop while sitting at a table to perform the exact same task, then the consensus seems to be she is not mlearning. I don’t understand the reasoning behind this.
And similar to the above, if a person is resting in an easy chair at home and using their device to learn then they are mlearning (even though they are only 20 feet from their pad and computer). But if a person is 200 miles from their home and office and learns the very same skill on their laptop, then they are not mlearning.
Define the device in terms of the learner. Mobility is the ability to learn where the learner is. If this is by textbook then it fits the definition. If the textbook is big and the learner is travelling there may be a problem, if it is replaced by a tablet and the battery gives out and the learner is in remote Africa then the textbook remains the mobile solution.
So by including the learning we find mobile is about being able to learn. A textbook may not support the media best suited to learning. A phone may not have a big enough screen, a laptop may provide the right keyboard for a particular task. But they are all mobile for particular learing situations. Why try to define them any other way? What is the purpose of your discussion?
Define the device in terms of the learner, the learner’s situation: their needs and resources. Don’t define a mobile learning device by the size of the screen but by the suitability of the screen for the learner’s needs.
I agree with Ralph. Police cars and ambulances fitted with laptops and “computing” on a train across Italy came to mind as examples of framing the definition in terms of the user (learner). What it also does is help learning designers dig more deeply into their rationale and goals for mlearning.
I just got backup storage for my computer, which happens to be a laptop, which rarely leaves my home. The backup is just a bit bigger than my phone. It too will rarely leave my home. Both were designed for portability, yet neither is used primarily as such. My ipad also rarely leaves my house, but when I travel it trumps the laptop most of the time.
I’d disagree with Ralph on the point: “Don’t define a mobile learning device by the size of the screen but by the suitability of the screen for the learner’s needs.” I’d argue that the learning outcomes drive the design. If a long text needs to be comprehended deeply, it should be served up in a way that facilitates this goal. The potential mobility of the learner should be a consideration but it shouldn’t drive the design.