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|title=Sustainability for mobile learning under the societal and cultural condition of delimitation, a conceptual framework with a proposal of practical tools
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|dblpUrl=https://dblp.org/rec/conf/biiml/Bachmair14
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==Sustainability for mobile learning under the societal and cultural condition of delimitation, a conceptual framework with a proposal of practical tools==
https://ceur-ws.org/Vol-1154/paper2.pdf
"This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License."
SUSTAINABILITY FOR MOBILE LEARNING UNDER THE
SOCIETAL AND CULTURAL CONDITION OF
DELIMITATION, A CONCEPTUAL FRAMEWORK WITH A
PROPOSAL OF PRACTICAL TOOLS
Bachmair, B. (2014). Paper presented at the Bristol Ideas in Mobile Learning 2014 Symposium,
Bristol.
Abstract
Mobile devices are a result and a contribution to blurring regulations and boundaries in mass
communication, everyday life, learning and teaching. The concept of detraditionalization in the form
of delimitation is an approach of sociology to explain the dramatic changes of the modern society into
a kind of second modernity (Lash, Giddens, Beck 1994, Beck, Bons, Lau 2003, Beck, Lau 2004). A
dominant societal and cultural feature of delimitation is provisionality (Kress 2010), which
characterises also emerging new forms of learning and teaching to which mobile learning belongs.
Provisionality urges also to understand sustainability not as a static definition with objectified
procedures and tools. This provisional character of sustainability became already visible in hundreds
of different definitions about which Scott (2002) reports for the discussion in education. To deal with
this kind of semiotic arbitrariness the World Commission on Environment and Development defined
already in its report from 1987 sustainability as development. Sustainability as a process can't repair
the underlaying provisionality but deal systemically with it. Nevertheless sustainability as concept
needs to be made concrete and unfolded within a theoretical frame. The theoretical fame, which I
propose, stems from a ecology of cultural which see mobile devices as cultural products and learning
as related processes. Mobile devices and mobile learning are depending of a mobile complex. To
explore this mobile complex and the idea of sustainability of learning in this complex the London
Mobile Learning Group proposes to analyse this complex by means of the triangular model of
structuration. This triangular model is based on Giddens' view (1984) on the interrelation of agency,
the human capacity of acting, within the societal and cultural structures. The London Mobile Learning
Group (Pachler, Bachmair, Cook 2010, p. 25) widened it triangularly by cultural practices as a third
depending category.
Although sustainability is a relational category, I see also as legitimate and necessary to enhance
sustainability as maintenance of stability, to make innovative procedures operational, and to generalise
implementation procedures. The intention of sustainability remains to maintain innovative processes,
to reach stability to work within operational procedures, to generalise implementation beyond single
cases of mobile learning procedures. How can be combined this practical requirement to sustainability
with its relational and provisional character? The proposal of Scott (2002) and Wan, Nicholas (2012)
is helpful to specify and realise sustainability of innovative mobile learning by and within
conversational procedures. My intention is to contribute to sustainability in conversations by offering a
set of tools.
The validity and reliability of the proposed tools can't be tested in general but in the concrete
conversational procedures for example to prove a mobile scenario in a defined school context or in
flexible structures of user generated context of internet sites, sites for explicit learning e.g. homework
and chats in peer groups.
With a critical look on the proposed tools for operationalizing sustainability one could become
suspicious: Why these and not others? Why so many? Why so restricted? Carefully tested or just
inspirations? The proposed tools result from conversations within the London Mobile Learning Group
and its research endeavor for a critical educational theory and practice of mobile learning. Seen within
in the hermeneutic spiral now a new round of conversation can organize further conversation and deal
critically accepting or refusing these tools as existing conversational results.
References
Beck, U., Bonss, W. and Lau, C. (2003) 'The Theory of Reflexive Modernization: Problematic, Hypotheses and
Research Programme', Theory, Culture & Society, 20(2): 1-33
Beck, U., Lau, C. (ed.) (2004): Entgrenzung und Entscheidung: Was ist neu an der Theorie reflexiver
Modernisierung? Frankfurt: Suhrkamp
Giddens, Anthony (1984): The Constitution of Society: Outline of the Theory of Structuration. Berkley and Los
Angeles: University of California Press.
Kress, G. (2010): Learning and Environments of Learning in Conditions of Provisionality. In: Bachmair, Ben.
(Hrsg.): Medienbildung in neuen Kulturräumen. Die deutschsprachige und britische Diskussion. Wiesbaden: VS
Verlag für Sozialwissenschaften, pp. 171-182.
Lash, S., Giddens, A., Beck, U. (1994). Reflexive Modernization: Politics, Tradition and Aesthetics in the
Modern Social Order. Cambridge: Polity Press
Ng, W., Nicholas, H. (2012). A framework for sustainable mobile learning in chools. British Journal of
Educational Technology Vol 44 No 5 2013, pp. 695–715
Pachler, N., Bachmair, B., Cook, J. (2010). Mobile Learning: Structures, Agency, Practices. New York:
Springer.
Report of the World Commission on Environment and Development (1987). Our Common Future. accessible at:
www.un-documents.net/wced-ocf.htm, accessed 28. December 2013
Scott, William (2002). Sustainability and learning: what role for the curriculum? Council for Environmental
Education. Reading. The text of the lecture is also available online at www.bath.ac.uk/cree