Is Learning Really a Phone Call Away? Knowledge Transfer in Mobile Learning

Abstract

Mobile learning can positively contribute to the development of learning communities by providing communication options that span contexts and locations, are available whenever, and are used virtually everywhere (Alexander, 2004; Sharples, Taylor & Vavoula, 2005). At UC Santa Barbara, we are currently conducting a campus-wide study that examines whether students’ use of technology, both within and beyond the classroom, correlates with academic performance. While we primarily concentrate on the use of course websites accessed with non-mobile devices, we have begun to use a Performance-Based Feedback System (PBFS) to explore (1) how to extend the instructor-student feedback loop beyond the traditional classroom setting, (2) how knowledge transfer can be accomplished using mobile devices, and (3) what technical challenges must be overcome. In this paper, we examine ways that mobile networking technologies can foster the creation of learning communities and provide new methods for studying knowledge transfer.