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DOI: 10.4018/IJMBL.2018100104
International Journal of Mobile and Blended LearningVolume 10 • Issue 4 • October-December 2018
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Literacies and Learning in Motion:Meaning Making and Transformation in a Community Mobile Storytelling ProjectJessica Frawley, University of Sydney, Sydney, Australia
Laurel Evelyn Dyson, University of Technology Sydney, Sydney, Australia
ABSTRACT
Mobile and participatory cultures have led to widespread change in the way we communicate;emphasizingusergeneratedcontentanddigitalmultimedia.Inthisenvironment,informallearningmayoccur throughdigitalandnetworkedactivities,with literacyno longer limited toalphabeticand character-based texts. This article explores adult learners’ new literacies within the contextofadigitalmobilestorytellingproject.Aqualitativeapproachisusedtoexploretheartifactsandpracticesofnineadultparticipantswhocomprisethestudy.Participantscreatedarangeoffiction,non-fiction,poetryanddiary-stylecontentinavarietyofmodesandmedia.Outcomesfromcontentanalysis,interviewandsurveymethodsdepictmobiledigitalliteraciesascharacteristicallysituated,experientialandmultimodal.Themobileandparticipatorynatureof thisprojectwascatalytic toparticipants’imaginativere-interpretationoftheworldaroundthemassourcesformeaningmakingand transformation. This paper contributes a case example of mobile learning with adults in acommunitysetting.
KeywoRdSCreative Practice, Digital Storytelling, Informal Learning, Mobile Learning, Mobile Phones, Multimodality, New Literacies, Participatory Culture, Student-Generated Multimedia, User-Generated Content
INTRodUCTIoN
Mobilelearning–asweunderstandit–isnotaboutdeliveringcontenttomobiledevicesbut,insteadabouttheprocessesofcomingtoknowandbeingabletooperatesuccessfullyin,andacross,newandever-changingcontextsandlearningspaces.And,itisaboutunderstandingandknowinghowtoutilizeoureverydaylife-worldsaslearningspaces(Pachler,Bachmair,Cook,&Kress,2010,p.6).
Social media, web 2.0 applications and mobile devices have come to characterise a digitallandscapethataffordspeoplewithnewwaystointeract,communicateandlearn.Thecommunicationcultureandtheartefactsthatcompriseitareoftenparticipatory,visual,andmultimodalinnature.Mobiledevicesarejustonetoolthroughwhichpeoplenavigatethesenewsemioticsurrounds.Thetechnicalconvergencethattypifieslatergenerationsofmobiledeviceshasprivilegeddigitalmedia(e.g.video)andmultimodalcontent(e.g.image,video,sound)overtraditionalwrittentext.Peoplenowhavethetoolswithwhichtoproduceandsharetheirownmultimediacultureandmeanings(Dyson,Litchfield,&Raban,2010).User-generatedcontentplatformsformanenvironment thatsupportswidespreadparticipatoryculture:non-expertsareabletocreateandsharenewcontentonline(Jenkins,Purushotma,Weigel,Clinton,&Robison,2009;Merchant,2009).Mobiledevicesareone
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gatewaytoparticipatinginsuchaculture,withparticipationandauthoringbehavioursacquiredandhonedoutsideofeducationalinstitutionssuchasschools,universitiesoronlinecourses.
Educationalresearchhaslongrecognizedtheimportanceandlegitimacyoflearningthat‘occurswithoutthepresenceofexternallyimposedcurriculacriteria[…]inanycontextoutsidethepre-establishedcurriculaofeducative institutions’ (Livingstone,2001,p.1).Outside theboundariesoftheeducationalinstitution,convergedmediaandtheirassociatedculturalpracticeshavehadatransformativeeffectonlearning(Pachleretal.,2010).Thoughparticipatorylearninginnovationssuchascrowdlearning,makercultureandcitizeninquiryareintheirascendency,thesehaveyettoleaveamarkedimpactoneducationoreducationalresearch(Sharplesetal.,2013).Intothiscontextthequestionisnotwhetherlearningisoccurringinformallythroughnewsocialnetworks,technologies,mediaandculturalpractice,buthowitisoccurring.Howdoadultswhoarenotenrolledwithinaneducationalprogram,whohavenosetcurriculaandareuntetheredfromtheestablishedsequenceoflearningoutcomes,assessmentandlearningactivities,utilizetheireverydaylife-worldsandtheirtechnologiesofchoiceastoolsforlearninginthesespaces?Answeringthisquestionisdifficult.Theunboundedandinformalnatureofmobile learningthat takesplacewithineverydaysettingspresentsnumerousmethodologicalchallenges(Sharples,2009;Traxler,2009).Mobilelearningthatischaracteristicallyinformal,personalizedandsituatedmayhavetoomanyvariablesandpresenttoomuchnoiseortoolittlesignal(Traxler,2009,p.160).Judgingwhenlearningstartsandendsisalsodifficult(Sharples,2009).Methodologicalchallengesinherenttomobilitymayalsobefurthercompoundedininstancesofinformallearning,whichhasalwaysbeendifficulttoresearchsinceitremainsoftenunacknowledgedbythelearner(Foley,2001;Hrimech,2005)whilehistoricallybeingvaluedlessthanitsformalcounterparts(Colley,Hodkinson,&Malcolm,2002;Marsick&Watkins,1990).
Thispapercontributestounderstandingsofmobilelearningthataccountforadultlearnerswhoarenotenrolledwithinanyformaleducationalprogram.Buildingonunderstandingsofmobilelearningasacontextualandecologicalphenomenon(Pachleretal.,2010)thispaperreportsanempiricalstudyofaparticipatorymobiledigitalstorytellingproject.Establishedasadigitalalternativetoatraditionalface-to-facecommunitywriters’group,themStoriesprojectprovidedtheboundedcasebywhichtoexploreunboundedphenomenaassociatedwithinformalmobilelearning.Thisprojectfocusedexplicitlyonhowadultsusemobileandotherdigitaltechnologieswithinmobileandnon-mobilesettingstocreatedigitalmultimediawithinacreativeandexpressivecontext.Asanexploratorystudy,qualitativemethodswereusedtomakesenseofmeaning-makingpracticesandartefactsassociatedwith theproject. It contributes anunderstandingof learning that takesplace informally throughuser-generatedcontentandservestoemphasisetheroleofmobilitywithinadults’newliteraciesdevelopment. In focusing on both the practice and the products associated with mobile digitalstorytelling,theresearchdrawsattentiontotheinherentlymultimodal(e.g.imageandtext,soundandvideo)natureofmobiledeviceuse,andhowthisusagerelatesecologicallytoothertechnologies.Specifically, thisarticledescribeshowadultsengagedincreativemultimodalpracticewithintheever-changingcontextofthemobilespaceandthelearningthatparticipantspresented.Fromthesecontributions,futureresearchmaybebetterplacedtoexplorehowsuchskillsareinitiallyacquiredorbestutilisedtofacilitatefuturelearningwithincommunitysettings.Thisworkaddstheoreticaldiscussiontoexistingdigitalstorytellingpractices(e.g.Lambert,2002)andoffersalternativewaysthatmobilitymayalterdigitalstorytellingandbeadoptedwithincommunitybasedlearning.
WebeginwithareviewoftheliteraturebeforedescribingthemStoriesprojectdesignanditsmethodology.Asacase study, thedesignandmethodsarepresented in tandem.Following this,keyfindingsarepresentedandadiscussionrelatestheempiricalworkbacktothewiderliterature.Implicationsforpractitionersarethenhighlighted.Thepaperconcludesbysuggestingavenuesforfurtherwork.
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LITeRATURe ReVIew
Thissectioncoversrelevantliteraturefromtwoconvergentdisciplinaryfields:newliteraciesresearchandmobilelearning.Newliteraciesresearchinformsthestudy’sunderstandingofthesocio-technical,communicativeandsemioticlandscapethatlearnersengagewith,whilemobilelearningresearchfocusesoninformalandcommunitybasedlearnerpopulations.Gapswithintheresearchliteraturearehighlightedandusedtoframetheempiricalworkatthecentreofthemainstudy.
New LiteraciesChangestothetechnological,culturalandsociallandscapechallengetheconceptofliteracyandwhatitmeanstobeliterate.User-generatedcontent,participatorycultureandthetechnologiesthatsupportthishaveallowedpeopletoconsume,produceandsharearangeofmediaandmodes.Contentmayincludewrittentext,image,video,soundandmusic.Bothartefacts(whatpeoplemake)andpraxis(whatpeopledo)havechanged,withrecentresearchrecognisingthatbotharenecessarytounderstandthephenomenonofinterest.Traditionaldefinitionsofliteracythatprivilegethewrittenwordtotheexclusionofallelse,failtoaccountforthediversityofskills,toolsandartefactsthatshapehowpeoplenowinteractandconstructmeaning.Researchfromthedisciplineof‘newliteracies’hasbeguntoredefineandexploreliteracyinanewway.Definitionsmayencompasstheabilitytouseandinterpretmovingimage,music,soundandgesture(seeIedema,2001;Kress,2000;Kress,2003;Kress&vanLeeuwen,2006).Asthetermliteracyexpands,newterminologyemergestoarticulateand mark new literacy practices from traditional lexicographic counterparts. Discussions haveshiftedfromthesingular‘literacy’totheplural‘multiliteracies’(Cope&Kalantzis,2000).Termssuchas‘visualliteracy’(Kress&vanLeeuwen,2006),‘multimodalliteracy’(Jewitt,2005),‘digitalvisualliteracy’(Spalter&vanDam,2008),‘designliteracy’(Sheridan&Roswell,2010)and‘newliteracies’(Lankshear&Knobel,2006)attempttoaccountforboththemodeandskillassociatedwithsuchbehaviours.
For educators and technologists, new literacies present us with more than just a change interminology.Theacquisitionandlearningoftheseskillsdiffersfromthatoftraditionalliteracy.Wheretraditionalreadingandwritingwereacquiredwithintheeducationalinstitutionand/orhome,newliteraciesmaybeinformallylearnt,self-taughtandformedoutsidetheclassroom.Assuch,theconceptofnewliteraciesispartofawiderparadigmaticshiftinlearning.Educatorsmayfindthemselvestobelessliterateinthesenewskillsthantheirstudents(Nordmark,Frolunde&Milrad,2010).Intheseconditions,achievingacompletemasteryof thesenewcommunicationskillsmaybe impossibleforanyoneindividual–teacherorstudent,adultorchild(Ranieri&Bruni,2013).Suchpracticesdisrupttraditionalmodelsoflearning.Likereadingandwriting,understandingdigitaltechnologiesandmultimodalliteracyareessentialforparticipatinginasocietythatutilizesboth(Mills,2010a).
Therelationshipbetweendigitaltechnologiesandtheacquisitionofmultimodalliteracieshasbeenrecognisedasasignificantareaforresearch.Despitethis,inquiryfocusingonadultlearnersandtheirinformallyacquiredpracticesislimited.Todate,empiricalstudieshavefocusedonthepracticesofchildren,asopposedtoadults.Studiesofmultimodalliteracieshavebeenconductedinearlychildhood(seeFlewitt,Messer,&Kucirkova,2014;Wolfe&Flewitt,2010),primary(Fails,Druin,&Guha,2010)andsecondary(Mills,2010b)educationsettings.Inmanyways,thisisnotsurprising.Literacyhasalwayshadstrongtieswithearlychildhooddevelopment.Furthermore,asayoungandconvergentdiscipline,newliteraciesinheritsitsresearchfocifromotherfields(Livingstone,vanCouvering,&Thumim,2008),namelytraditionalliteracyscholars,whosedomainhastypicallyfocusedonschool-levellearners.Wherethediscoursecentresaroundtechnology’simpactonadultliteracythishasfrequentlypreoccupieditselfwithananalysisofthephenomenaofuseratherthanhowmasteryofthenewmediaisacquired,whetherthisbesocialanxietyabouttheuseofTxt spk(seeCrystal,2008),tothemuchcontestedarchetypesofthe‘digitalnative’(Prensky,2001)and‘the
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NetGeneration’(Tapscott,1998),totheroleofphotographsonFacebookincommunication,identityconstructionandtheunderstandingofreality(Winston,2013).Howadultshavelearnttheliteracyskillsneededtousethesenewmediaisgenerallynotinvestigated.
Mobility and LearningMobilelearning,asadiscipline,ishabituatedintothinkingaboutlearnerswhoaremobileandaffordedwithself-directionwithinadhocenvironments(Wang&Shen,2011),sometimesoutsideofformaleducationalinstitutions(Livingstone,2001).Inthecaseofnewliteracies,mobilelearningallowsindividualsto‘re-interprettheireverydaylifecontextsaspotentialresourcesforlearning’(Pachler,2009,p.5).Foradultsininformalsettings,learningdiffersfromtheheavilystructuredandoutcomesbasedformatprevalentinformalcurricula.Thisisimportantifwearetorecognizeeducationasbeingmorethanjust“learningfacts,acquiringskillsandbecomingsocializedinroles”(Nohl,2009,p.287).Despitethis,thefieldhasoftenfocusedonlearnersenrolledineducationalinstitutionssuchasschools,collegesanduniversitiesthathaveaformalizedandsetcurricula,eveniflearningtakesplacewithinaninformalsetting.
Mobiledevicesareonetoolthatenablespeopletoengagewiththeireverydaysurrounds,notonlyasconsumers,butalsoasproducersofdigitalartefacts.Thisissomethingthat,theauthorsargue,remainsacriticalcomponentnecessarytounderstandnewliteracies.Thoughresearchintotheroleofmobilitywithinnewliteraciesislimited,findingsfromexistingstudiesdemonstratethepowerofuser-generatedcontentapproachesforadultlearnersinthecommunity(Ranieri&Bruni,2013;Ranieri&Pachler,2014).InRanieriandPachler’s(2014)studyofmobiledigitalstorytelling,mobiledeviceswerea‘resourceforidentityformationandself-representation’.Thisreinforceswhatweknowaboutdigitalstorytellingasameansofempoweringandgivingvoicetoitsparticipants(Lambert,2002;Meadows,2003).Secondly, theresearchersalsofound thatmobilestorytellingenabledpowerfultransformativelearningexperiences(Ranieri&Pachler,2014).Transformationallearningtheory(seeMezirow,1991)isanimportantconceptinadultandlifelonglearning,wheretransformativelearningexperiencescanhelpus“challengeandsubsequentlychangeouryetunchallengedpsychologicalandculturalassumptionsthatconstituteour‘meaningperspectives’(Nohl,2009,p.287).
Adult Mobile Learners, Informal Practice and New LiteraciesThequestionformobilelearningishownewliteraciesareenactedwithinthemobilespace.Mobiletechnologies support learning that is informal (e.g. Pachler, 2009; Pachler et al., 2010; Traxler,2007), lifelong (O’Malleyet al.,2005;Sharples,2000)and flows ‘across locations, time, topicsandtechnologies’(Sharples,Arnedillo-Sánchez,&Milrad,2009,p.235).Itcansituatealearningconversationwithintheindividualuser’swork(Coulby,Hennessey,Davies,&Fuller,2011)orwithintheirpersonaltimeandspace(Sharples,Taylor,&Vavoula,2007).Tounderstandwhatformthislearningconversationmighttake,weneedtounderstandnewliteraciesfromamobileperspective.Thismeansnotonlypracticallygroundingtheresearch,forexampleinstudiesinvolvingmobiledevicesoractivities,butorientatingsuchstudiestheoreticallywithinexistingcontributionsofmobilelearning.Fromsuchavantagepoint,studiesmaybetteraccountforhumanandcomputermobility,informalpracticeandhowliteracypracticeformspartofthewiderecologicalmobilecomplex(seePachleretal.,2010).Likewise,whiledigitalstorytellinghasbeenusedsuccessfullywithinthecommunity(seeLambert,2002;Meadows,2003),itremainsunder-theorized,lackingunderstandingsofeitherliteracyormobility.Thus,buildingonunderstandingsinnewliteraciesandmobilelearningmayallowustobetterunderstandhowsuchskillsareacquiredandpracticedoutsideoftheeducationalinstitution.Thisisimportantforadultlearnersinatimewhenthewaysweconstructandshareknowledgebecomemorevisual,participatoryandmultimodal.Usingacommunity-basedproject,thisresearchexplorestheroleofmobilityonnewliteracyacquisitionandpracticeoutsideofformaleducationalprograms.
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MeTHodoLoGy
Infocusingourattentiononinformaladultmobile learning, theusualboundaries thatscopeanddelineateanareaofresearchareunclear.Thefactthatittakesplaceadhocandunplannedposesseveralmethodologicalchallenges,asdoesaninformallearnerpopulationwhomaynotacknowledgethatwhat theyaredoingcountsas learning(Foley,2001;Hrimech,2005).Likewise, there isnoestablishedtimeperiodsuchasasemester,orobjectssuchaslearningoutcomesorassessmentsthroughwhichtomeasurethislearning.Researchintoinformalmobilelearningrequiresamethodologythatprovidesscopeandboundariesthroughwhichtoaccesstheadultlivedexperience.Inthisstudy,theresearchersapproachedthisphenomenonofinterestthroughmStories,acreativedigitalwritingprojectthatsupportedadultsinthecommunityinlearningtocreatemobilestoriesusinganycombinationofimage,video,textandsoundaffordedbytheirmobiledevice.Participantswereprovidedwithaone-pagebriefanduploadedtheircontributiontoasharedpublicprojectwebsite.Likeotherkindsofinterventionistandeducationalresearch,theprojectisbothavehicleforthephenomenonofinterestandaresearchmethodinandofitself.Inthissection,theauthorsdescribetheresearchandprojectdesignasameansofunderstandingadults’informalmobileliteracieswithinacommunitycontext.Thissectionbeginswithamacroleveloverviewoftherationaleforacreativeandparticipatorycasestudyapproach,beforeoutliningthespecificresearchquestionandmethodsfordatacollectionandanalysis.
Creative Participation as a Means of InquiryCreativeapproacheshavelongbeenunderstoodasamethodoflegitimateinquiry(Sullivan,2005),onethatcanoftenbecollaborativeandofferrevelatoryinsightsintoacommunitywhenpairedwithaparticipatoryethos(e.g.Lykes,2001).Asnewtechnologiesarereappropriatedinnewways,insightsthatexplorethiscreativeusestandtooffervaluableinsights intobothmultimodalsemioticsandpractice(seevanLeeuwen,Djonov,&O’Halloran,2013).Creativeapproachesmayalsofacilitatelearning,sincecreativeexpressionhasbeenlinkedtotransformativelearning(Davis-Manigaulte,Yorks&Kasl,2006).Byofferingparticipantsablankcanvasinwhichtodosomethingdifferent,themStoriesprojectisameansforunderstandinghowpeoplelearnandapproachnewdigitaltasks.Originallystructuredaroundtheconceptofawriters’group,mStoriesoffersaparallelcommunitygroupforinformallearning,sharing,andengaginginacreativeactivity.Whilepre-existinguser-generatedplatforms(e.g.Facebook,YouTube,Instagram,Flickr)offerplacesforpeopletocreatemultimodalcontent, such forumsalreadyhave firmlyestablishedgenresandsocialnetworks. Incontrast,mStories,asanindependentcreativeproject,providedanovelspaceinwhichpeoplecouldengageinnew,andextended,meaningmakingandstorytellingpractices.WithinthemStoriesproject,participantsweregivenanopeninvitationtocreateandshareadigital“story”usinganyfeatureorfunctionoftheirmobiledevice.Mobilestoriescouldincludeanycombinationofimages,video,textandsound.Thecommunitywebsiteactedasagalleryandhubforcontentsharing.
A MoBILe ANd dIGITAL ‘wRITeRS’ GRoUP AS CASe STUdy
Inthisstudy,themStorieswritersgroupandprojectareinterpretedtobethe‘functioningspecific’(Stake, 1994, p. 236) necessary for case study research. Treating the project as a specific caseallowsustoinvestigatecircumstances,suchasinformalmobilelearning,whereboundariesbetweenphenomenonandcontextarenotclearlyevident(Yin,1994)whilecontinuingtorespecttheagencyofadultlearnerswithinthecommunity.Thisapproachprovidestheboundariesthroughwhichtoinvestigatetheproblematicallyunboundedphenomenon.Furthermore,incenteringthestudyontheparticipantgroup,asopposedtoaspecificapp,platformortechnology,theprojecttookahuman-centered approach that accommodated and responded to the diverse range of individual needs,technologies,interestsandmotivationspresentwithinthegroup.Theparticipantsthusdeterminethe
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boundsofbothprojectandcase.Thisisimportantforinformalmobilelearningthatischaracteristicallypersonalized,situated,andpronetohavingtoomanyvariables,toomuchnoiseandtoolittlesignal(Traxler,2009,p.160).Thoughacasestudyapproachlacksbreadthandgeneralizabilityofitsfindings,itneverthelesscontributesvaluablein-depthfindings,andlike‘blackswans’canoffersignificantinsighttoafieldofinquiry(Flyvbjerg,2004).
data Collection and AnalysisAsanexploratoryandparticipant-directedstudy,theresearchersadoptedqualitativeandemergentmethods.Theresearchersexploredboth‘whatismade’and‘howitismade’,sincetheseperspectivesareimportantwithinliteracyresearch(Andrews&Smith,2011).Qualitativedataisusedtoaddressthefollowingresearchquestion:
RQ:Howcanwebestdescribeadults’informallyacquiredmobileliteracypractices?
Forthepurposesofthisstudy,literacyreferstothemeaning-makingprocessassociatedwiththe‘reading’and‘writing’ofdigitalartefacts.Theresearchquestionwasinvestigatedthroughthreeiterativephasesofdatacollectionandanalysis.ThestagesaredepictedinTable1.
FINdINGS
The findings from the mStories project are presented sequentially by stage. Qualitative data issummarizedusingexamplequotations.Ininstanceswhereitisbothclearerandmoreinformativetopresentfindingsnumerically(e.g.commonthemes)weusenumericdata,thoughasaqualitativestudythatisrootedwithinaninterpretivistresearchparadigmthisdatahasnostatisticalsignificance.
Stage 1: Preliminary SurveyThepreliminarysurveywasdesignedtoexploreexistingmobileuseandmotivationsforparticipatingintheproject.
Participant EngagementThe project established itself by recruiting participants through writers’ groups and communitynetworks.Followingtraditionalparticipatoryandactionresearchapproaches,thegroupwasoriginallyestablishedtoworkfacetoface.However,thedigitalnatureofaspectsoftheprojectledtoashifttoonlineparticipation,outlinedinearlierwork(Frawley,2012).Thoughestablishedonawriters’groupmodelitwaslargelynon-writers(two-thirds)whoexpressedinterestinjoining.ThefinalmStories
Table 1. Methodology and data collection
Stage Method Aims Data collected
1 Preliminarysurvey Whoparticipatedandwhy?
•Participants’demographics•Typeofphoneandexistingusage•Occupationandhobbies•Motivationsforparticipating
2 Contentandartefactanalysis Whatwascreated?
•Modesandmediaused•Genresandcontentcreated•Semioticfeatures
3Post-projectinterviewandsurvey
HowdidpeoplecreatethedigitalmobilestoryanalysedinStage2?
•Modalchoice•Technologychoice•Perceptionsandattitudesofoutcomeandprocess
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participantgroupwascomposedofninepeople.ParticipantswerefromAustralia(n=5)andtheUK(n=4),withanagerangespanningfrom21-25to46-55.Genderwascomprisedofmale(n=4)andfemale(n=5).Thissmallsamplesizeallowedforresponsiveandlabourintensiveresearchmethodsincludingthemultimodalanalysispresentedinthispaperandtheintersemioticanalysispresentedinearlierworkbytheauthors(Frawley&Dyson,2014).
Existing Device UsageTheresultsfromthissurveyfoundthat,whileallparticipantsusedtheirphoneforcallsandtextmessaging,therewasadifferenceintheextenttowhichpeopleengagedinmultimodalconsumptionandproductionbehaviours(Table2).Thiscanbeinterpretedasareflectionofthedifferencesindeviceownershipatthetime,withnotallphoneseasilyaffordingmultimodalpractices.Thoughtherewasarangeofinterests,noneoftheparticipantshadeverusedtheirdevicetocreateamobilestorybefore,thusconfirmingtheprojectasanopportunityfortheparticipantstolearnsomethingnew.
MotivationsAlthoughwriters’groupswereinitiallyapproached,membersfromwriters’groupsaccountedforonlyonethird(n=3)ofthefinalgroup.Whilstthereweretwoprofessionalwritersinthegroup,otherparticipantshadarangeofoccupations(Table3).Participants’hobbiesweresimilarlydiverseandincludedthingssuchasphotography,dramaandacting,sportsandoutdooractivities.Interestintheprojectwasgaugedthroughtheopenquestion:“WhatinterestedyouinparticipatinginthemStoriesproject?”Participants’responseswerecodedthematically.Fromthiscodingthreedominantthemesemerged:
• To be creative (n= 5):e.g.“Achancetobecreativeandconductmyowne-show”• Interesting or fun (n=4):e.g.“soundsfun,interestingandatinybitsilly”• It is different or new (n=5):e.g.“Writingashortstorywithamobilephoneisn’tsomethingmany
peoplewouldconsiderandallthebetterawaytoinjectsomestimulusintothewritingworld”
Table 2. Thematic coding of participants’ existing mobile literacy practices
Literacy practice as categorized by the researcher Activities Instances (n= _/9)
Multimodalandmultimediadominantliteracy
Consumption Surfingthenet 7
Watchingonlinevideo 4
Downloadingmusicorvideo 1
GPSandmaps 7
Playinggames 3
Production Takingphotos 7
Makingvideos 3
Recordingsound 2
Both Socialnetworking 4
Textdominantliteracy Reading ReadingeBooks 2
Readingandwriting Text 9
Email 6
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Stage 2: Content AnalysisThecompletedmStoriesandtheir inclusionwithinthemStorieswebsiteprovideddataaboutthemedia,genreandcontextthatwereemployedbyusers(Table3).
Modes and MediaOftheninecreativestoriesgeneratedbyparticipants,allemployedthevisualmodethrougheitherstillormovingimage.Textandimagecombinationsaccountedforthemajorityofstoriesuploaded.Oneexampleof this is“WhatamIwearing today?”–asequenceofdailyself-portraits thatareaccompaniedbytextofferingtheauthor’spersonalreflectionsandcomments(Figure1).Participantsdemonstratedtheabilitytonotonlyusedifferentsemiotics(e.g.imageandtext)buttocombinethesetocreateasinglecomprehensivesemanticunitinwhichdifferentsemiotics“spoke”toeachother.AnexampleofthiscanbeseeninFigure1,wherethepronoun“this”(inthewrittentext)canonlybeunderstoodinrelationtothevisualimagetowhichitrefers.
Table 3. Participants’ digital mobile stories – genre, media and context
ID Participant/Author Genre Media Contexts and locations
Occupation and location
Gender Age (Years)
1 FirefighterSydney(Australia)
M 21–25 Documentary Video Journeyfromfirestationtofire.
2 WriterCambridge(UK)
M 26–30 Poem“iambictextameter”
TextPhoto
Poemandphotoinspiredbyviewofachurchyard.
3 FundraiserLondon(UK)
F 26–30 Themedphotos
Photo MorningsinLondontakenfromflatandcommutetowork.
4 ManagementConsultantLondon(UK)
M 26–30 Photodiary Photo CommutetoworkinLondon.
5 AccountantSydney(Australia)
M 31–35 Mixedgenre(CompositeDiary)
PhotoVideoMusic
IdealisedSaturdaycompiledofmanySaturdaysatmarkets,beaches,artgalleries,gardens,andafireworksdisplay.
6 InteractionDesignerSydney(Australia)
F 31–35 Diary TextPhoto
Dailyportraitanddiaryentryabouttheclothesapersonwears.
7 MedicaldoctorCambridge(UK)
F 31–35 Photodiary Photo Momentsfroma“specialday”inLondontakenatmarkets,onthetube,intheshops,atthetheatreandathome.
8 WriterandmotherSydney(Australia)
F 36-45 Shortstoryfiction
TextPhoto
‘Spookystory’setinmanydifferentlocations:playground,thestreet,apre-schoolclassroometc.
9 ResearcherSydney(Australia)
F 46-55 Poems TextPhoto
Poemssettophotoportraitsofflowers.
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GenreSeveralgenreswererepresented,includingashortspeculativefictionstory,poetry,documentaryanddiaryforms.PhotoorvideodiarieswerethemostcommongenreonthemStorieswebsite.However,whileparticipantsadoptedacceptedgenres,thesewereappropriatedinwaysthateitherbentorby-passedexistingconventions.Forexample,onepoem(pairedwithaphotoofthespecificlocationthatprovided inspiration to the text)waswrittenusingSMSandcomprisedfour linesof iambicpentameter.However,theauthorchosetorefertothisastheiambictextameter,inrecognitionofthemobiletechnologyusedtocreateit(Figure2).
Similarly,thevisiblepresenceofthemobilephonecoveringthefaceoftheauthorinthestory‘WhatamIwearingtoday?’(Figure1)divergesfromboththetraditionalconventionsofportraiture,andthecontemporaryconventionofa‘selfie’,whichisaphototakenofoneselfusingaphoneheldatarm’slengthsothatthedevicedoesnotshowintheimage.
Thoughthediarygenrewaspopular,theseweresometimespartfictioninnature.Onestory,entitled‘MySaturday’wasacompositemixofphotoandvideofrommanySaturdaysthatformedasinglenarrativestructuredfrommorningtoevening(Figure3).
Asapasticheofphotos,videos,soundrecordingsandmusic,thestoryof‘MySaturday’resistsclearcategorization.Similarly,thequestionofwhatcountsaspoetryischallengedbythetwopoeticcontributions,bothofwhichusetextandimage.Giventhatthepoem’smeaningisboundtobothmodes,suchcontentpresentsachallengetodefinitionsofpoetrythatfocussolelyonthetext,howeverconcretethatmightbe.
ContextWhatiseasilyobservablefromTable3istheextenttowhichthestoriesportraythecontextinwhichtheyaresituated.ThoughStory9wasaseriesofmobilepoemswritteninSMSthatreflectedonthe
Figure 1. What am I wearing today? (excerpt)
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participant’sprofessionallytakenphotographsofnativeAustralianflowers,theeightotherstoriesalldirectlyprovideadialoguebetweentheindividualandthemobilecontextinwhichtheyaresituated.Thisdialoguecanresultindifferentoutcomes.InStory8photosoflocalplacesinSydneyarerewrittenbytextintoaspooky,speculativefiction.Anintersemioticanalysisofthisrevealedthesophisticatedwaysthatmodeandmediawereusedtoredesignthecontextforthestory(Frawley&Dyson,2014).Ontheotherhand,inStory6‘WhatamIwearingtoday?’(Figure1),wheretheparticipant’schoiceofclothesismadeinthemorningbeforeshegoestowork,eachphotoreflectsthetimeofthatperson’sexperienceandtheirplaceofdecisioninfrontofthemirror.Inanotherexample,thefirefighter’sstory,theimmediatecontextofhiswork,thefilmingofthefireasitwasbeingfought,resultedinthecurtailmentofthestorywhenthedemandsofthejobprecludedanycontinuanceoffilming.Themobiledevicesthusallowedeachparticipanttoexploretheirexperiencewithinthecontexttheyhadchosenfortheproject.Incapturingtheircontextualizedexperiencesthetechnologyandtheprojectaddressedoneofthemainaspectsofadultlearning,thatis,theacknowledgementthat‘adultsdefinethemselveslargelybytheirexperience[and]haveadeepinvestmentinitsvalue’(Knowles,1980,p.50).
Figure 2. Iambic Textameter – A view from my window
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Narrative ViewpointsInconsideringthewaysthatparticipantsconstructmeaningfortheviewerorreaderoftheirstories,twocommonthemeswereidentified.Withinvisualsemioticanalysistheinterpersonalmetafunctionsuggeststhesocialrelationshipenactedbetweentheviewerandtheimage(Kress&vanLeeuwen,2006).Within themobile stories, especially those thatwerephotodiaries, imagesconstructedarelationshipwherebytheviewerbecametheparticipantandsharedintheirviewoftheworld.ThisismostnoticeableinStories1,3,4and7.Toillustratethis,anexcerptfromtheStory4,MyLondonCommute(Figure4)positionstheviewerasthecommuterwithinthestory.Thiscanbeinterpretedasthevisualequivalentofliterarydevicesthatalignthereaderwithasinglecharacterbynarratingthestoryfromthatperspective,forinstance,inthefirstpersonorthroughadiaryformat.ThoughStory4’sindividualimagesareoftenblurredandoutoffocus,theperspectiveandsequenceoftheseimagescreatesanarrativethatmakessenseofthisactionandgivesitastory.
Thoughlessvisible,asecondaryapproachwasalsoused.ThiswasmostnotableinstylisedorsymbolicstoriessuchasStories3and7,wherea‘stilllife’ofclothes,foodorwinewasusedinlieuofrepresentingaprocessoranaction.Forexample,excerptsfromStory7,‘Aspecialday’(Figure5),depictbreakfastandgettingreadyforthedaythroughastylisedsettingofobjectsthatindicateaperiodwithinawiderevent.Theseobjectsagainpositiontheviewerintheplaceoftheparticipant.Themobiledevicesthusallowedparticipantstoconstruct,shareandexternaliseeachindividual’sownreflectionsandunderstandings.Inconversationallearningtheory,aminimumrequirementforlearning
Figure 3. My Saturday (excerpt)
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isthatforapersonmustbeabletoconversetothemselvesaboutwhattheyknow;moreeffectivestillisforsuchexternalisedrepresentationstobesharedwithothersaspartofalearningconversation(Sharples,2002).Whatthenarrativeviewpointsdemonstrateisthedifferentwayslearnersconstructthisconversationinordertointerrogate,articulateandexternalisetheirownexperiencesandidentities.
Stage 3: Post-mStory Survey and InterviewThepost-mStoryinterviewandsurveyexploredhowparticipantscreatedtheirstoryandmadedecisionsaboutthemodeandprocessassociatedwithgeneratingthatcontent.
Modal Choice and AgencyParticipants’choiceofmodeormediawasprincipallymotivatedbytheperceivedneedsofeithertheindividualauthor/creatororthestoryitself.Thedominantthemesthatemergedfromthedatawere:
• Practical Needs:“Iwantedtoillustratethepaceofmyjourneytoworkandneededsomethingthatwasquicktouseandeasilyaccessible.ThecameraworksononeclicksoIcouldgetanimagequicklywithoutdrawingtoomuchattentiontomyself.”
• Expressive Needs:“IthoughtabouttakingaseriesofphotosandaddingtextbutdecidedthatthetaskcouldbeaccomplishedmoresimplyifIallowedthepicturesandsoundtospeakforthemselves”
• Interest Needs:“Ilovephotography.Ithoughtitwasagoodwaytoregistermydaylikeadiary”
Figure 4. Sharing perspectives on action and process
Figure 5. Still life and symbolism in mStories photography
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ParticipantswereaskedwhethertheysupplementedtheirmStorywithanycontentnotcreatedontheirmobilephone.Twoparticipantschosetouseacameratotakephotosbecauseoftheperceivedlimitationsoftheirdevice:oneperson’sphonedidnothaveacamera,whilstonechosetousetheircameratogeta“higherqualityofphoto”thantheirphoneallowed.Bothsaidthatthephoto“addedagreatdeal”totheSMSpoemsthattheyhadwritten.Inadditiontothis,twoparticipantswhocreatedmobilevideocontentresortedtotheirlaptopstoformattheirfinalsubmissions.Bothparticipantsfoundittobetootime-consuminganddifficulttodoontheirmobiledevice.
Participant ProcessIndescribingtheprocess,participantswereheavilyinfluencedbyin-situactionsandreflectionsonthemobilecontextofuse.
• “Iwasinspiredbytheviewoutofmywindow…”• “Iwantedtogivetheimpressionthattheyweredoingthecommutewithme”
However,whilstthemobilespaceprovidedcreativeimpetus,theshapingofthisintoameaningfulstoryisaresultoftheindividual’sowndialogueandactionwiththatmobilecontextofuse.ThiswasnoticeableinStory9.InthismStorytheparticipanthadwrittenacollectionofpoemsusingSMSbutinspiredbyphotographyofflowersshehadtakenusingaDigitalSLRcameraonaphotographycourseintheBlueMountainsNationalPark.However,theverylastimageandpoeminthesequenceisofanEchidna(Figure6),whichwascapturedinthebackgardenusingthedeviceshehadonheratthetime–hermobilephone.
Thisdialoguewas inseparable from the individual and their personalmotivations, interests,likesandreflections.Decisionsonwhattocreateastoryaboutweredrivenbywhattheindividualperceivedtobeinteresting:e.g.“Iwantedtocreatesomethingfunandexciting”.Likewise,learningbyreflectingonthatenvironmentalsobecameanimportantpartofthisdialogicinteraction.InStory1,afirefighterwhousedhisphonetocreateavideostoryabouthisworkdescribes:“SincemakingmymStoryIhavecaughtmyselftakingphotosofthings.Ifeelthisisbecausecapturingthesethingsmakesmeawareofthem”.Thus,theparticipant’sbehaviourchangedbecauseoftheirexperienceinthisproject,demonstratingthepowerformobilelearningtobeusedincommunityprojectstofacilitatetransformation.
Learning in Mobile SpacesOutsideofaneducationalenvironmentandinaninformalsetting,itisoftendifficultforpeopletorecogniseorarticulatewhattheyaredoingintermsoflearning.Askingdirectquestionsonlearning,especiallywithinacreativeproject,ispotentiallyproblematic.However,fromindirectquestionssuchas‘whatdidyougainfromthisexperience?’and‘whatdidyoulikeordislike?’qualitiesandpotentialprerequisitesforlearningdidemerge,mostchieflywith:
• Self-efficacy and identity: “IgainedalotandIfoundthatIgainedtheknowledgethatIcanthinkonmyfeetmorethanIthinkIcan…Andyeahthat’sthethingIlearnt[…]thinkingonyourfeetyou’vegotnothingbackingyouup.You’vegotnopermissiontowrite.AndIwasabletoembracethatchallengeandIwashappywhenIproducedsomethingthatIkindofliked.”
• Adaption and overcoming technical constraints:“OnacomputerathomeIwouldhavearesearchdocument,drafts[…]youcan’tdothatonaphone,soIhadtoproducesomethingcompletelydifferent.”
• Reflection and metacognition:“ThetypeofthingthatbecamemymStoryisfairlycommon,onethatInormallyexperienceandforget.EventhoughIstillhaven’tlookedatmymStorysinceIcreatedit,Istillveryclearlyrememberwhathappened,whereasIdon’trememberhalfofthe
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othersimilarinstances.Thisissomethingthathasalsooccurredwithotherphotossince.IthinkcapturingeventshasmademeawarethatthingsIfindmundane,may,iflookedatclosely,actuallybeworthremembering.”
Awareness,thatis,reflection,wasenhancedbytheaffordanceofthemobiledevicesforcapturingeventsandcontextingraphicform,eitherasphotosorvideos.Thisallowedparticipantstoviewtheexperienceagain,forexample,whentheycompletedthestorythrougheditingoruploadingtothewebsite.Educationaltheoryshowsthatreflectionisessentialforlong-termlearning,asametacognitiveskillthroughwhichlearnersclarifytheirunderstandingsandareabletotransferthenewconceptsandskillstolatersituations(Dewey,1933).
Figure 6. Story 9 (Excerpt)
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Allparticipantsreportedneverhavingcreatedadigitalormobilestorypriortojoiningtheproject,yetallparticipantsdidcreatesomethingentirelynew.Indeed,seekingto‘becreative’and‘todosomethingnewordifferent’weretheprimaryparticipantmotivationsrecordedinthepreliminarysurvey.Ifthisistheoutcomesetbytheparticipants,thenlearning,albeitinformal,didtakeplace.Noveltyandcreativitywereimportantinthislearningprocess;inshort,wemaynotonly‘learnbydoing’butmay‘learnbydoingsomethingelse’.
dISCUSSIoN
Mobiledevicesaffordvisualandmultimodalcommunication.Byembracingthis,themStoriesprojectwasabletowidenparticipationfromthatfoundatusualwriters’groupstoaffordreflectiveandnovelpracticesandopportunitiesforadultlearningandtransformativeexperiences.Thesepracticeswerecharacteristically situated,experiential and reflectiveandallowedparticipants toengagedirectlywiththemobilecontextofuseinawaythatwasnovelandcreative.Whencombined,thefindingsfromthethreestagesofdatacollectionallowustoformanelementaryunderstandingofhowthewidermobilecomplexaffectsnewliteracypracticesandlearning.Asadultlearnersinaparticipatorycontext,theindividualsdemonstrablyextendedtheirexistingliteracypractices,bothintermsoftheartefactstheymadeandpracticestheyengagedin.Noneoftheparticipantshadevercreatedadigitalormobilestorybefore.However,withintheparametersoftheprojectallparticipantssucceededincreatingamobiledigitalstory.ThecollectiveoutcomeofthemStoriesprojectwasanexpressiveandcreativecontributionthatdifferedmarkedlyfromexistinggenresofsocialmedia.Theprojectoutputswerecharacteristicallymultimodaland imagebased, reflecting thewidersocio-technicalshiftfromaword-centrictoavisual-centricculture(Spencer,2011).EachmStoryalsoshowedahighdegreeofsophisticationinthewayimages,textsandsoundweredesignedtocommunicatewithanimaginedreader.Participants’storiessimultaneouslyappropriateandchallengeexistinggenreconventions,demonstratingnoveltyinproductandpractice.Specificexamplesthatdemonstratedlearnedextensionofnewliteracieswerepoeticformatssuchastheiambic textameterandemergentpracticessuchasthatofthefirefighter’sreflectiononactionthroughphotographyandvideo.Suchshiftsingenresupportresearchthatsuggestsdigitaltechnologiesmaybechangingthestructureofstoriesandnarratives(Alexander&Levine,2008;Loveless,2007).Fromalearningperspective,thisprojectdemonstratesthecapacityformobilestorytellingtoprovidetheconditionsfortransformativelearningexperiences(seeMezirow,1991)fromacreativeproject.
Participants’successinthisprojectcannotbeunderstoodwithoutreferencetotheirmotivationsandthewaytheparticipatoryethosoftheprojectitselfsupportedindividuals’self-directionintheirlearning.Asindicatedinthepreliminarysurvey,participantswantedtojointheproject‘becreative’and‘dosomethingnew’.Theoriesofadultlearninghavelongrecognisedtheimportanceoflearners’settingtheirowngoals(Knowles,1980).Thus,byallowingindividualstoshareinthe‘responsibilityforplanningandoperatingalearningexperience,andthereforehaveafeelingofcommitmenttowardit’(Knowles,1980,p.57),themStoriesprojectrecognisedthevalueofadultlearners’ownexperiencesandthevalueofthiswithintheirlearning.Asasocialnarrative,eachmStoryallowedlearnerstoconstructknowledgeintheirownmodes,mediaandterms.EachstorycanbeinterpretedasbeingpartofthecollectivemStoriesconversation.Inthisproject,suchlearningconversations(seeSharples,2002)werefocusedontheindividualidentityofthestorytellerandthepersonalorthematicstorythattheywishedtoshare.
Withintheproject,mobiledevicesplayedanimportantrolewithinawiderICTecology.Mobiledevicessupportedadultlearnersindrawingontheplacesandspacesthatcomprisedtheirdailylives(seePachleretal.,2010),withcreativetriggersin situoftenbeingreflecteduponanddevelopedinothercontextsusingothertools.Thoughdevicefeatures,suchasthecamera,mayhaveafforded,constrained and facilitated different multimodal practice, participants were not technologicallydetermined.Instead,individualscontinuedtoexertpersonalchoiceandagencyastheyshapedtheir
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digitalstory.Participantsturnedtootherdevicesavailabletothemtorealizedesignintentions.Thishighlightsthewayinwhichmobiledevicesareentangledwithintheindividual’swiderICTecology(Brady&Dyson,2010).Thougheachindividual’spersonalICTecologymaybeshapedbypersonalpreferencesandsocio-economicfactors,thisworkreinforcestheneedformobilelearningscholarsandpractitionerstocontinuetolookbeyondthedevice.Assuch,conceptsofubiquitouscomputingthatrecognisethewiderstructureofphysical,socialandinformaticssystemsthatareentangledwithinindividuals’dailylives(Shepard,2013)anddefinitionsofmobilelearningthatfocusonthemobilecomplex(seePachleretal.,2010),arebetterplacedtohelpunderstandanddesignmobilelearningforadultlearnersinthecommunity.
Throughoutthisstudyseveralthemeshaveemergetoaddresstheresearchquestion:“Howcanwebestdescribeadults’informallyacquiredmobileliteracypractices?”.Inshort,thismobileliteracyandlearningisbestdescribedas:multimodal,participantdesigned,situated,experiential,reflective,motivatedandparticipatory.
IMPLICATIoNS FoR PRACTICe
Byopeningupstorytellingtomultimodalmethodsandapproaches,themStories“writinggroup”wasabletoaccommodateadiversegroupofpeople(writersandnon-writers)inlearninghowtodosomethingentirelynew.Thisresearchandcaseexamplecanbeputintoapplicationinseveralways.Firstly,areasindigitalstorytelling(seeLambert,2002)thatadoptdesktoptechnologiesandtypicallylinearnarrativepatternscouldembracemobiletechnologiestoallowforstorytellingthatmayoccurin other formats and shapes. This may support increased creative agency, identity constructionandreflection.Thisapproachandtheresearchassociatedwithitcanbeappliedandextendedincommunitysettingstosupporttheexperientialandparticipatoryneedsofadultlearners(seeKnowles,1980).Secondly,whiletheauthorsrecognisethatwecannoteverguaranteetransformativelearning,approachessuchasthisone,andthatoutlinedbyRanieriandBruni(2013),cancreatetheconditionswherebyitispossibleforparticipantstoexperienceorencountertheperspectiveshiftthatispartoftransformativelearningtheory.Lastly,whilethisworkfocuseslargelyoncommunitysettings,theauthorsarguethatdigitalmobilestorytellinghasthepotentialtobetransposedtoformalsettingswherecreativeprojectsmayalloweducatorstosupportstudentsinexploringareasrelatingtoidentityandmeaningmaking.Thisapproachmayprovideanalternativetomoreoutcomes-basedapproachestocurriculumdesign.
CoNCLUSIoNS ANd FUTURe woRK
Likeadultlearnersmoregenerally(Knowles1980,p.50),participantscametothisprojectnotasblankslates,butaspeoplewithmotivations,individualinterests,attitudesandideasderivedfromtheirpreviouslifeexperiences,andusedtheirlifecontextasaplaceinwhichtobecreative.Thepictureofmobileliteracydepictedhereisplace-based,andecological.Throughthisstudywecanretainthevoiceoftheadultlearnerassomeonewhoisactiveandcontinuallyengagedinliteracylearninganddevelopment,asopposedtothemoretraditionallybinaryliterate/illiteratedistinctions.Fromunderstandinghowadultsextendnewliteracies,wearebetterplacedtotargetkeyquestionsthatrelatetoinitialacquisitionofnewliteraciesbyadultlearners,andhowandtowhatextentinformallearningoccurs.
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ACKNowLedGMeNT
Thisproject,asaparticipatorywork,wouldnothavebeenpossiblewithouttheindividualswhosecreativeandresearchcontributionsareatthecentreofthispaper.Theauthorsthankindividualsforallowingustopublishexcerptsoftheirmobilestories.Anearlierversionofthispaperwaspresentedat the mLearn Conference in Istanbul, Turkey. The anonymous peer reviewers and inputs fromconferencediscussantshaveshapedthedevelopmentofthispaper.
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Jessica Frawley is an academic at the University of Sydney where she works in both Educational Innovation and as an Honorary Member of the School of Architecture, Design & Planning. She was recently awarded her PhD, in which she researched Mobile Learning for Civic Food Literacy Engagement. Jessica has worked on research and consultancy projects in educational technology and mobile learning within the UTS Faculty of Engineering and IT’s School of Software and the UTS Business School. Dr Frawley led the design of mInteract, a mobile learning technology that enables interactive learning within large lectures. With a background in user interface design Jessica is interested in the role that mobile interfaces and technologies play in changing literacy and reading and writing behaviours. She has won two teaching awards: the UTS Team Teaching Award 2012 and an OLT Citation for Outstanding Contributions to Student Learning 2013.
Laurel Evelyn Dyson is an Honorary Associate of the University of Technology Sydney following her recent retirement as an IT academic. Her research focuses on mobile learning and the use of mobile technologies by Indigenous people. She has over 25 years’ experience teaching in the university and adult education sector. Her mLearning research extends to ethical issues and student-centred learning approaches such as student-generated multimedia, interactive classroom systems and mobile-supported fieldwork. Dr Dyson has won 5 teaching awards, including 2 national OLT awards, and also the UTS Equity and Diversity Award and the Pauline McLeod Award for Reconciliation. She has received 3 Best Paper Awards and 1 Best Project Award. In 2009 she founded anzMLearn. Dr Dyson has consulted for UNESCO and the Australian Government, and has delivered several keynotes, invited talks and radio interviews in her areas of research. Her most recent book is Indigenous People and Mobile Technologies.
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