Developing confidence in the use of digital tools in teaching

In this study Higher Education teachers were offered new mobile devices with very few conditions attached. The aim was to introduce staff to mobile technology and how it could be used to support teaching and learning within a small, interdisciplinary campus. The study hypothesized that by offering staff the simple incentive of new mobile devices for professional and private use, they will be keener to adopt new practices. The only conditions required were the adoption of two items of software – SharePoint as a file repository, and the VLE provider’s mobile learning application which provides access to the VLE for both learners and staff. There were three stages to the project; Stage 1 involved presenting staff the results of student feedback from their own courses, where the students set out their preferences for using learning technologies. Stage 2 involved surveying staff opinions on the impact of the mobile devices once they were issued. Stage 3 followed up with a selection of interviews, focussing on concepts of interest gained from the questionnaires. Overall results from this study suggested there was an undeniable enthusiasm amongst teaching staff for using mobile technology, however there were still issues surrounding digital confidence and the pedagogical reasoning for integrating such technologies. There is still a divide on the role of mobile technologies within the classroom, most likely stemmed from the lack of knowledge surrounding their potential purpose. In conclusion, staff enthusiasm alone is not enough to result in adoption and integration of mobile technology within teaching and learning, there must be a focus on pedagogy and relevance for teaching staff to engage fully.