The use of mobile learning in higher education: A systematic review

Mobile device ownership has exploded with the majority of adults owning more than one mobile device. The largest demographic of mobile device users are 18-29 years old which is also the typical age of college attendees. This systematic review provides the scholarly community with a current synthesis of mobile learning research across 2010-2016 in higher education settings regarding the purposes, outcomes, methodologies, subject matter domains, educational level, educational context, device types and geographical distribution of studies. Major findings include that the majority of the studies focused on the impact of mobile learning on student achievement. Language instruction was the most often researched subject matter domain. The findings reveal that 74% involved undergraduate students and 54% took place in a formal educational context. Higher education faculty are encouraged to consider the opportunity to expand their learning possibilities beyond the classroom with mobile learning.