A Study of Educational Functions of Mobile Learning
Hung-Jen Yang, Y.M. Chu & L.W. Wang
Department of Industrial Technology Education
National Kaohsiung Normal University
#11 Ho-Ping 1st Rd., Kaohsiung
Taiwan
hjyang@nknucc.nknu.edu.tw
Jui-Chen Yu
National Science And Technology Museum
#720 Ju-Ru 1st Rd., Kaohsiung
Taiwan.
raisin@mail.nstm.gov.tw
Hsieh-Hua Yang
Department of Health Care Management
Chung Jung Christian University
396 Chang Jung Rd., Sec. 1, Kway Jen, Tainan 71101
Taiwan
yangsnow@mail.cju.edu.tw
Abstract:-The purpose of this study was to identify the educational functions of mobile learning. Based upon deducing
from the definition of learning and special functions of mobile learning, four learning abilities enabled by mobile
technology and six functions of mobile technology were founded. The learning ability could be expanded by mobile
technology are remembering, sensing, assessing, and responding. Those educational functions of mobile learning are
1).user centered, 2).individual settings, 3).mobile, 4).durable, 5).network/ communication, and 6).ubiquitous. These
four abilities under those six functions together would contribute to the results of effective mobile learning. A
conceptual model was also presented.
Key-word: Mobile Learning, Educational Functions
1. Introduction
the pedagogical potential of mobile devices, the screen
The portability and instant communication properties of
size, computational power, battery capacity, input
mobile devices influence the learning processes in
interfaces, and network bandwidth are too restricted to
interacting
and
develop acceptable functionality for the entire learning
transferring data[1-8]. The short message and browsing
processes in a handheld device[1, 4, 12-22]. There is a
functions in a cell phone provide users with timely and
need to re-conceptualize educational functions of mobile
adaptive information access[8-11].
learning.
with
peers,
accessing
resources
Although many studies of mobile learning indicate
Definition of Learning
Definition of Learning
Definition of Learning
Educational
Functions of
Mobile Learning
Mobility
Functions of Learning
Functions of Learning
Functions of Learning
Figure 1 Conceptual structure of deducing mobile learning functions
2. Theory Frame
conducting one’s behavior and learning new
Technology provides people the flexibility to solve the
experience. From this simple example, the working
problems. The core problem of this study is how the
definition of learning could be described as
mobile technology assists learning. For answering this
following:
‘An human being is said to have learnt when it
question, two faces literature review were conducted.
Those were:
has increased its options for applying, to a specific

deducing from definition and
set of circumstances, new or different behaviors

illustrating upon the special functions[5, 9, 10,
which the organism believes will be to its benefit[4,
23-27].
28].’
In figure 1, the educational functions of mobile learning
would be deduced from both definition of learning and
4. Functions of Mobile Learning
special mobile function of learning.
4.1. Expanding Users’ Learning Ability
We can deduce from this definition that in order to
3. Mobile Learning
learn, an organism needs the mobile technology to
When dealing with mobile learning, it is useful to
expanding the ability to:
have a working definition of learning. Learning is

sense what is going on in the environment;
like “thinking”: we all know what it is until we

assess whether its response to an event is
have to define it.
beneficial or harmful;
Let’s go back to basics and considered a very

simple example of learning: how people learn to
avoid rain. Very simply, if people walk in a rain
remember the event, its response and the
consequences;

respond with a different behavior.
without umbrella, he/she gets wet. The person
Notice that phrases used: ‘increased its options’
remembers the experience and ‘learns’ that
and ‘ability to’. This is because learning is not
avoiding wet would be own benefit. Next time the
always
learned
experience
could
be referenced
for
immediately
followed
by
observable
behavior learning is often stored for future use.
transitions, and how new technologies can be
designed to support a society in which people on
4.2. Distinguished functions of Mobile Learning
the move increasingly try to fill up learning into the
A first step in postulating a function of mobile
interstices of daily life.
learning is to differentiate what is special about
The
mobile
technology
should
provide
mobile learning compared to other types of learning
distinguished functions for effective learning.
activity. An obvious, yet important, difference is
Effective learning should be:
that it starts from the assumption that learners are

Learner centered
continually on the move.

Personalised
People learn across space as they take ideas and

Situated
learning resources gained in one location and apply

Lifelong
or develop them in another. People learn across

Collaborative
time, by revisiting knowledge that was gained

Ubiquitous
earlier in a different context, and more generally,
The mobile technology could be used for those
through ideas and strategies gained in early years
functions contributed to learning:
providing a framework for a lifetime of learning.

User centered function
Learners move from topic to topic, managing a

Individual settings
range of personal learning projects, rather than

Mobile function
following a single curriculum. Learners also move

Durable function
in and out of engagement with technology, for

Network/ communication function
example as they enter and leave mobile phone

Ubiquitous function
coverage.
Computation
technology,
like
learning,
is
To interpret learning as a changeable activity is
ubiquitous: computers are embedded in devices
not to separate it from other forms of educational
such as photocopiers and televisions that perform
activity, since some aspects of informal and
human-oriented
workplace learning are fundamentally mobile in the
instruction and user guidance) rather than acting as
ways discussed above. Even learners within a
general-purpose computing devices. They are also
school will move from room to room and shift from
becoming more durable, in that although the
topic to topic. Rather, it illuminates existing
hardware may last only for two or three years,
practices of learning from a new angle. By placing
personal software packages and storage formats
mobility of learning as the object of analysis we
(such as PDF for document, AVI for movie, and
may understand better how knowledge and skills
MP3 for sound) evolve through successive versions,
can be transferred across contexts such as home and
with a large measure of backward compatibility.
school, how learning can be managed across life
There are now opportunities for people to preserve
functions
(including
basic
and organize digital records of their learning over a
could be the fundamental components of learning.
lifetime.
Mobile device could support memory function via
Learning is being conceived as a personalized
both local storage and on-line storage. By
and learner-centered activity, so too are new digital
integrating functions of sense, assess, and respond,
technologies offering personalized services such as
learning newer experience could be accomplished
music play-lists and digital calendars.
upon the assistance of mobile technology. On the
Learning is now regarded as a situated and
other hand, for contributing mobile leaner’s
collaborative activity, occurring wherever people,
learning, the mobile device should demonstrate
individually or collectively, have problems to solve
functions supporting mobile learning. Those are:
or knowledge to share, so mobile networked

User centered
technology enables people to communicate

Individual settings
regardless of their location.

Mobile

Durable
5. Conclusion

Network/ communication
The pedagogical difference promoted by mobile

Ubiquitous
technology is that learning occurring in the field or
Together, user centered, individual settings,
while mobile. Therefore, mobile devices can be
mobile, network/communication, and ubiquitous,
adopted to fill the gap between Web-based learning
all
and ubiquitous mobile learning. Mobile learning
environment of mobile learning. Those educational
could be applied not only formal education but also
functions make it possible to expanding mobile
informal education.
learning ability of memory, sense, assess, and
Based upon the reviewing both definitions of
learning and distinguished functions of mobile
technology, a mobile learning function model was
presented in Figure 2.
Mobile technology should provide user the
functions to expand learning ability in the way of

remembering

sensing

assessing

responding
In the figure 2, the remember acts as a core
position. Old experience withdrawn from memory
six
educational
functions
establish
an
respond. These four abilities contribute to the
results of effective mobile learning.
User centered
Individual Setting
Assess
Respond
Ubiquitous
Mobile
Remember
Sense
Network /
Communication
Durable
Figure 2 Mobile functions expanding users' learning ability module
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