A study of mobile learning for higher education students in Guangzhou

Background Recently, ‘mobile learning’ (M-learning) has become a popular research topic in investigating how to use mobile device for teaching and learning. M-learning is a mode of learning using smartphones, phablets, tablets, netbooks or notebooks as the learning device and is a part of electronic learning (e-learning). However, M-learning is more flexible than e-learning [1,2] because students can learn anywhere, anytime. Moreover, M-learning is an important new learning strategy because mobile devices are now necessary tools in students’ daily life. As noted by Yousuf [3], M-learning is ‘more interactive, involving more contact, communication, and collaboration with people’. M-learning is a student-oriented approach that makes learning informal, independent and collaborative[3]. Based on the theoretical model Framework for the Rational Analysis of Mobile Education (FRAME) [4], this study examined the practices and attitudes relating to M-learning for university students’ studying in Guangzhou, particularly to examine what and how knowledge will be acquired using mobile devices in learning. This model is valuable in different aspects as it can be used: a. as an indicator for the development of future mobile devices; b. for the development of learning materials; and c. for the design of teaching and learning strategies for mobile education.