ELI Short Course: Evaluating the Effectiveness of Mobile Learning Initiatives

Are Your Campus Mobile Initiatives Effective?

Higher education institutions are increasingly exploring mobile environments and tools to engage students and enhance learning. In this short course, we reviewed and applied strategies and methodologies to help evaluate their effectiveness and outcomes and measure their impact on teaching and learning. As we reviewed these approaches and measurement frameworks, participants considered their challenges and opportunities in these areas and what research might be useful to advance their mobility work. The short course included three examples of how institutions have measured their mobile initiatives and have used results to advance their future work in this area.

Learning Objectives

During this ELI Short Course, participants

• Explored frameworks to identify the various areas where a mobile learning initiative may support learning and engagement;
• Drafted a plan for evaluating their mobile learning initiative;
• Developed a baseline understanding with common evaluation instruments, such as surveys, focus groups, interviews, and observations and the steps involved in using them to evaluate mobile learning; and
• Prepared to carry out an evaluation of their mobile learning initiative.