Designing and Evaluating Innovative Mobile Pedagogies Erasmus Project

Project Title

Designing and Evaluating Innovative Mobile Pedagogies

Project Key Action

This project related with these key action: Cooperation for innovation and the exchange of good practices

Project Action Type

This project related with this action type : Strategic Partnerships for school education

Project Call Year

This project’s Call Year is 2017

Project Topics

This project is related with these Project Topics: New innovative curricula/educational methods/development of training courses; ICT – new technologies – digital competences; Reaching the policy level/dialogue with decision makers

Project Summary

Context/background

Research evidence indicates how there is an urgent need for educators across the world to better understand the transformative potential of mobile technologies in learning and how to design mobile learning pedagogies that are innovative and make a discernable difference to the learning experiences for young people. The Designing and Evaluating Innovative Mobile Pedagogies project (DEIMP) has achieved this ambition through the identification of evidence-based principles, an innovative mobile app, an online course, a series of multimedia case studies, and a selection of high quality academic and professional publications that demonstrate how, when used appropriately, mobile technologies can make a significant difference.

Objectives of the project:

The aim of the project was to demonstrate how the professional profile of educators across this spectrum can be strengthened to ensure that learning is responsive to the benefits and opportunities afforded by mobile technologies. To achieve this aim the project adopted the following objectives:
1. to enhance participants’ understanding of how mobile technologies can promote transformative and inclusive pedagogies

2. to increase participants’ abilities to design and evaluate innovative and inclusive mobile pedagogies

3. to link teacher educators and teachers together to develop and research mobile pedagogies

4. to promote a transnational network to validate and disseminate national examples of innovative pedagogies beyond the life of the project

5. to support decision and policy-makers in adopting, promoting, and investing in more innovative mobile pedagogical approaches
number and type/profile of participant

Participants

The project included five university partners involved in teacher education, a consultant with experience in CPD and a commercial partner in Cyprus with expertise in digital technologies and app design. Each partner identified at least five academics within their institution to work on the project. In addition each partner university identified up to 5 partner schools to work with on the project and to test the project outcomes as they developed. This group of schools established itself as a network for innovation in m-learning.

Description of undertaken activities;

In order to achieve the objectives above the project adopted a Design Based Research methodology (DBR) to iterate over the creation of a mobile app (objectives 1 & 2) and an online course/MOOC for teachers and teacher educators (Objectives 1, 2, 3 and 4), It used the findings from an extensive Scoping Study based on a systematic literature review of the research on mobile learning to underpin the design of an innovative app and online course and created a series of multimedia case studies with teachers involved to illustrate the use of these resources in practice. It also created a network of 24 schools across Europe and Australia to link teachers and teacher educators and to help them explore together the use of mobile technologies as tools for innovation and change.

Results and impact attained

The results of the activities above include a number of tangible deliverables (listed below) and a number of significant impacts (listed below)

The tangible results from this project include:
* a Scoping Study Report (IO1) that syntheses the evidence base for innovative mobile learning from around the world and identifies examples of innovative and transformative practice along with a set of 21 design principles for innovative mobile learning (m-learning)
* an innovative mobile app(IO2) combined with an online course/MOOC for educators that enables them to design, test and evaluate their own innovative m-learning pedagogies
* a collection of multimedia case studies – available on the project website – that illustrates how teachers and teacher educators used the app and MOOC in their daily practices and the lessons gained from this
* a collection of high quality, peer-reviewed academic articles and. other publications that chart the progress of the project and demonstrate some of its impacts.

Impact

Data collected during and at the end of the project indicates significant impacts at different levels.

*All five of the partner institutions have established themselves as centers of excellence for innovative m-learning and staff in these institutions have increased their understanding and capability in using and promoting mobile technologies in learning.
* the research papers and dissemination activities have established demonstrable evidence to support more innovative uses of mobile technologies and have had a major impact on academics and professional alike
* at least 1400 teachers, teacher educators, and other professionals have participated in activities associated with the project
The project has left a legacy of resources (see website) and a network of partner schools that are better equipped to use mobile tec hnologies in innovative ways.

EU Grant (Eur)

Funding of the project from EU: 396706 Eur

Project Coordinator

UNIVERSITY OF HULL & Country: UK

Project Partners

• Technology Enhanced Lifelong Learning Consult
• UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY SYDNEY
• NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF IRELAND GALWAY
• STICHTING HOGER ONDERWIJS NEDERLAND
• Hogeschool PXL
• CENTRE FOR ADVANCEMENT OF RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT IN EDUCATIONAL TECHNOLOGY LTD-CARDET