“Wow, after just one year this cool device has convinced everyone to replace proof with mere anecdote,” remarked hvyhytr. “What a tool—hallucinations without chemicals. Wish we’d have had these things in the 60s.”
“Ever hear of the Hawthorne Effect?” asked flanneryp, referring to the tendency of some people to work harder and perform better when they are participants in an experiment, or for another intangible reason that has nothing to do with the stimuli being tested.
In this case, some readers postulated, maybe the early gains are not a result of the mobile learning technology itself, or its use in the classroom—but rather are a short-term phenomenon associated with the excitement or “newness” of the ed-tech tool.
There was less skepticism expressed over Managing Editor Laura Devaney’s story “‘Bring your own device’ catching on in schools,” which ran online April 29. Many readers responded in support of the idea, saying BYOD or BYOT (bring your own technology) policies can be a cost-effective way to leverage mobile learning tools in the classroom—although ed-tech leaders will need to carefully consider certain logistical challenges.
“As a technology facilitator in an elementary school, I totally embrace BYOD,” wrote honeydotmartin. “Of course, the students without their own device will be provided for, but the cost will be dramatically reduced if students [who] already own devices are able to use them in school. This also gives you the added bonus of using the same device at home and school.”
honeydotmartin continued, “There will be some logistics [to solve] as far as monitoring use, protecting the devices, etc. However, teaching responsibility through this experience will be valuable to the students, as the same issues exist in the real world. It, of course, would be wonderful if there [were] enough funding for all of these devices to be purchased for the schools, but it just isn’t happening.”
For more on mobile technology, read:
Annual report pegs mobile learning, cloud computing as imminent
Reader blankenships wrote: “BYOT is not only a great idea but will soon become the norm. As an administrator, I visit schools and with one step into the door, I feel as if I stepped into 1973. Students are sitting in rows working on work sheets or taking a test or quiz as the only type of assessment tool. Students are simply powering down at school and as soon as the last bell sounds, students enthusiastically power up. Becoming a one-to-one school can seem financially impossible, however, if 75 percent of students have smart phones, then it’s time we embrace this technology.
“If we are not preparing our 8th graders for the year 2015, then we are not preparing our students for college. It’s time schools develop a technology-friendly policy to create an environment where teachers can mesh technology with both science and math and create real-world problems. NO MORE sifting tirelessly through the textbook hunting for definitions only to copy the answer straight from the book. In the real world, I would have Googled the question in five seconds and read at least three different empirical articles related to the question in three minutes, while … creating a document simply by talking, and then simply sharing these thoughts with my peers in real time using an EtherPad!”
“Just two weeks ago, my company launched a free educational service called Celly that lets students, educators, and parents collaborate in text-based groups using BYOD cell phones,” said celly, the company’s founder. “Celly works via texting, enabling low entry-point access (does not require every user to have a smart phone), and enables group admins to moderate/filter message content and membership as needed for diverse classroom scenarios. Several schools in the Portland, Ore., area (our hometown) and around the country are running test pilots. We want to hear any feedback from educators as we believe BYOD has incredible potential. Text START to 23599 to give it a try!”
Still, some readers had questions about how ‘bring your own device’ or ‘bring your own technology’ would work in schools.
- Texas Instruments Announces the TI-Rover BT: Bringing Math to Life with a Calculator-Controlled Robotic Vehicle - October 26, 2026
- Vivacity Launches New Learning Hub for All Your District’s Google Training. - October 8, 2026
- Abre Launches “Vera,” Analytics Agent Built to Retire Static K-12 Dashboards - September 23, 2026
Comments are closed.