oa Mobile Technology, Maths Education & 21C Learning

Technology in general, and mobile technology in particular, remains under-exploited in secondary school education systems. This paper argues that systemic reform is needed to make the use of mobile technology really meaningful in the classroom. The type of change envisaged falls under what is broadly termed 21st Century Learning which espouses a generally social constructivist pedagogical approach with an emphasis on skills such as collaboration, communication, creativity, problem solving etc. In such a milieu the affordances of mobile technology align seamlessly with classroom practice rather than, as at present, being circumscribed and restricted to use for content consumption, field exercises or one-off customised interventions.

To illustrate the way in which mobile technology could integrate into a 21C classroom a number of lesson plans from the area of math education are described. These are situated in a national second level education system which is undergoing systemic reform and in which teachers, and schools, are looking for exemplars of pragmatic models of 21C Learning which can be used to deliver both 21C skills and traditional curriculum content.