Mobile Learning in Higher Education in the Asia-Pacific Region: Harnessing Trends and Challenging Orthodoxies

If mobile technologies are to be effectively used in education, how do we best implement sustainable mobile solutions for teaching and learning? The aim of this handbook is to support educators and policy makers who are investing in innovations in digital education to develop effective and sustainable mobile learning solutions for higher education environments.

Authors from sixteen countries across the Asia-Pacific region have collaborated to share their experiences with developing and implementing mobile learning initiatives. These projects focus on a variety of aspects of mobile learning innovation, from the trial adoption of existing social media platforms on mobile devices and the development of specialised applications or mobile learning systems, to the large-scale, interuniversity implementation of technologies and pedagogies to support mobile learning.

Each chapter addresses challenges and solutions at one or more levels of mobile learning innovation within the education system, encompassing the student perspective, the educator perspective, technical processes, policies and organisational strategy, and leadership. The book also offers a unique perspective on the integration of mobile learning innovations within the educational, political and cultural environments of Asia-Pacific countries.

Angela Murphy is the learning analytics manager at the University of Southern Queensland (USQ), Australia. She has been employed at USQ as a research fellow in the Australian Digital Futures Institute since 2011 (now Digital Life Lab). Her work included a 3-year USQ-led Collaborative Research Network (CRN) project with the Australian National University and the University of South Australia to develop an evaluation framework for sustainable mobile learning initiatives in higher education environments. Her research involved exploring the experiences ofstudents, educators and leaders in the Asia-Pacific region who were actively engaged in mobile learning or mobile learning innovation.
Helen Farley is an associate professor within the Digital Life Lab at the University of Southern Queensland. Her research interests include investigating the affordances of emerging digital technologies, including virtual worlds, augmented reality and mobile technologies, in formal and informal learning. She led the CRN-funded project to develop a Mobile Learning Evaluation Framework, working with Dr. Angela Murphy. She is passionate about digital inclusion and leads the $4.4 million Making the Connection project which recently received an Australian Award for University Teaching for Programs that Enhance Learning. Associate Professor Farley has published extensively and is a featured speaker at both educational technology and corrections conferences. She is also on the ASCILITE executive committee and chairs the community mentoring portfolio.
Laurel Evelyn Dyson is an Honorary Associate in Information Technology at the University of Technology, Sydney, and founding president of anzMLearn, the Australian and New Zealand Mobile Learning Group, established in 2009. She has published over 75 papers and books, which include research into the innovative use of mobile technology to enhance student learning and the adoption of mobile technologies by Indigenous people. She has three decades of experience teaching in the university and adult education sector and is the recipient of five faculty, university and national teaching awards, three best paper awards and two Reconciliation awards. Her most recent book is Indigenous People and Mobile Technologies.

Hazel Jones is currently an Educational Designer and a PhD candidate at University of Southern Queensland Australia. Her research interests are in higher education and learning analytics, with an emphasis on support for online learning and teaching and for working with academics to provide quality learning environments for their students. She has worked in educational design and development roles at universities around Australia for over 15 years.