M-LEARNING (MOBILE LEARNING) IN HIGHER EDUCATION. THE IMPACT OF SMARTPHONE AS INTERACTIVE LEARNING TOOL

In the last few years mobile devices like laptops, tablets and smartphones became more and more popular. Mobile devices have revolutionized the campus because of its low cost and technical capabilities, which together with a wide spread of Internet services has caused a change in the behaviour of students. This reality that teachers perceive every day has transformed the way in which students interact with their environment. Thus a change occurs in the nature of higher education, leading to an emerging concept of teaching and learning based on student mobility, "m-learning". This facilitates the design and implementation of active strategies in the classroom. Implementing mobile services in education in the form of mobile learning is an innovative process at many levels of higher education. Thereby it’s possible define mobile learning as a point interacted to provide mobile computer technologies and internet-based learning. Its use can increase the motivation of students and increase their interest in the subject. The purpose of this study has been to explore how higher education teaching and learning were affected by the integration of mobile computing devices.

The expressions A3 (anytime, anywhere and anybody) has been synonymous for the beginning, the first steps of Blended Learning. “From anywhere, on any device at any time...” This is the trend in the current model of on-line education. Laptops, tablets and smartphones allow access to the Internet from almost anywhere ubiquity , and where a person is able to locate any further information necessary availability . An important change has occurred in the teaching-learning paradigm where new methodologies and educational strategies have been designed to complement the student assessment. Implementation of Web-2.0 applications in university teaching involves incorporating new activities, communication styles, roles and scenarios. The use of these educational resources allows increase the student motivation factor, while improving the abilities, skills and competences acquired by the student. The goal of this innovation experience was to include the smartphones, tablets and social media in higher education learning environments. In essence, it can be argued, that with the availability of mobile devices and collaborative, social media tools…, student learning begins after leaving the classroom when students can collaborate with peers and interact with their surroundings. However some students perceived their mobile devices as possible distractions in their learning.

During the last decade the usage and dependency on internet has drastically increased, as well as applications based on it, and this fact has had an immediate impact in the education context. The use of apps based on free and open software has enabled a fast implementation of educational innovation experience, since most of the students are accustomed to using this applications type. However its use must be correct so that you can really be helpful for training student; in order to obtain the maximum performance of available tools. The objective is to seek new active-collaborative learning using internet, Web 2.0 and social networks to generate more significant learning. There are many universities who care more and more by leverage the use of the new technologies and information devices, in the classroom and outside it; in order to improve the educational process and that students get the best possible results.