Marit Rismark

Learning spaces in mobile learning environments

Mobile learning (m-learning) environments open a wide range of new and exciting learning opportunities, and envision students who are continually on the move, learn across space and time, and move from topic to topic and in and out of interaction with technology. In this article we present findings from a study of how students manoeuvre and study within an m-learning environment. The students in the study were enthusiastic about the new learning options provided by the mobile technologies, and they reported that the learning environment offered new study opportunities. One major asset was the flexibility of being able to study at any time and any place. The students engaged in learning activities within three learning spaces: attending lectures, on-campus activities and off-campus activities. Each learning space had different features when it came to how the students worked with the course material. Interactions between the participants, how they used the mobile technologies and their perceptions of the student role also differed across the learning spaces. To realize the valuable affordances provided by m-learning environments, educators will need to undertake complex pedagogical reasoning in their planning and teaching and must take into account how students act within various learning spaces.

The likelihood of success during classroom discourse

Abstract The role of language in elementary school classrooms is discussed, focusing on the likelihood of pupil success in teacher‐pupil discourse. This interchange is examined from the standpoint of critical theory; the advocated view is that general school success is rooted in the outcome of the teachers‐pupil discourse, and that favourable classroom participation varies according to what is favoured by the teacher. Critical factors discussed are how different backgrounds and experiences, most notably ethnicity and gender, can affect the likelihood of success during classroom discourse.