CCE Theses and Dissertations

Date of Award

2015

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy in Computing Technology in Education (DCTE)

Department

College of Engineering and Computing

Advisor

Gertrude W. Abramson

Committee Member

Antonio Rincon

Committee Member

Ling Wang

Keywords

mLearning, Mobile learning

Abstract

As mobile technologies have increasingly become a part of personal and work environments, mobile learning is emerging as a viable alternative for training and education needs. Faced with the need for innovative and cost-efficient ways for training government employees, agencies and departments are considering the use of mobile learning. The availability of a wide range of mobile technology provides many options. Other than the Department of Defense, little is known about implementing mobile learning in United States government cabinet level agencies and departments. A concurrent, mixed methods case study was used to examine how organizations decide to use, implement and evaluate mobile learning efforts. The framework and context were established through a thorough review of recent, related research literature. A purposive sampling strategy was used with the goal of targeting participants that have the greatest potential of using or considering the use of mobile learning. Three research questions guided the study and concentrated on the influences on the decision to implement mobile learning, the approaches organizations take and the methods used to evaluate implementations. A self-administered online questionnaire, using both structured and semi-structured questions and a review of publicly available documents were used to build a picture of the evidence that described the current state of mobile learning in cabinet-level agencies and departments. Quantitative and qualitative data were collected, integrated, interpreted and compared. Connections and relationships were made between mobile technology use, mobile learning environments, mobile learning content, educators and trainers, mobile learners and mobile learning evaluations. The results revealed that cabinet-level agencies and departments have begun to make use of mobile technology to support the delivery of business service. To a lesser extent, perceptions are forming, and the role of mobile learning continues being defined, as organizations are cautiously adopting its use. Policies and guidelines are in the early stages of development. The results contribute to the growing body of work on the use of mobile learning.

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