I’m happy to report that the eLearning Guild has just released this year’s mobile learning research report I authored for them (after doing the same last year). It’s free if you’re already a paid member of the Guild, which has other benefits (e.g. similar free access to other coming research reports, Thought Leader Webinars, etc). Combining my summary of the ‘state of the industry’ with the results of surveys of the Guild’s membership, it’s a snapshot of the state of mobile learning.
I should admit that there’s a bias in the report, in that the membership of the Guild is largely (though not wholly) corporate, and again largely US based. I suspect, therefore, that the global picture isn’t fully represented in the report. However, I do hope that the commentary does reflect general principles that are relevant regardless of context, though the fact of the market is that smartphones for instance are more distributed in the developed world than the developing world.
In the report, I make two points:
“What‘s clear is that it is time to move beyond the initial experimental stages and start thinking of mobile as a platform for organizational performance. … The time to get on top of mobile is now, as the market has matured to the point where we can see real benefits on a pragmatic basis.”
I believe mobile, as a platform, will have a transformative effect on the learning and performance workplace as it will elsewhere. As mobile delivers digital augmentation of our capabilities wherever and whenever, no longer just at the desktop, it will bring all the resources onto the table: performance support and social as well as augmenting formal learning. This is an opportunity for a game-change, where L&D can take responsibility for more benefits to the organization, and as a consequence be viewed more core to the business.
If you’re interested in what’s happening in mobile learning, this report is for you. If you’re active in learning & technology, I reckon eLearning Guild membership makes sense as well.
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