Active learning using a smartphone app: analysing land use patterns in Cork City, Ireland

ABSTRACT

Opportunities to deploy digital technologies to research agendas and active learning in tertiary education are becoming more widespread. Despite this, many research techniques are still taught using traditional “pen-and-paper” methodologies. In this article, we report on a strategy for integrating mobile technology into our large (275+) module GG1015 Applied Geography, via the use of smartphones and the ESRI Collector for ArcGIS app. Focus groups identified three common themes among students in response to using this mobile technology in geographic research. Our findings suggest that digital technologies can enhance active learning in geography for all students. Similarly, such activities should not only be reserved for small groups, and can be up-scaled for larger class sizes, particularly when using new technologies. Finally, we illustrate how the use of technology in a group setting can foster teamwork, peer-to-peer learning, and positively reinforce the uptake of digital technology in geographic fieldwork.

KEYWORDS:

• Digital literacy
• fieldwork
• large-class
• participatory learning
• smartphones

Acknowledgments

Firstly, we would like to thank the students in GG1015 who participated in this project, especially those who completed the survey and contributed to the focus groups. We would also like to thank the editors and reviewers for their comments and suggestions, and Caitlin Dalla Pria and Adam Pasik who transcribed the focus group discussions. Finally, we would like to acknowledge the Office of the Vice President for Learning & Teaching at UCC for funding this research.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Supplementary material

Supplemental data for this article can be accessed here.

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by the University College Cork Teaching and Learning Research and Enhancement Fund.