Using Mobile Apps to Foster Social Presence in the

Online Classroom

George EngelKeith Pratt, PhDRena Palloff, PhD

Mobile Tech and the University

• 5 billion cell phones in world• 1 billion internet capable mobile devices• Online Enrollments include mobile device

users• What is the impact of mobile tech on the

online learning environment?

Social Presence

• “The degree of salience between two communicators” (Short & Christie, 1976).

• “the person we become when we are online and how we express that person in virtual space (Palloff and Pratt, 2007).

Multiple definitions:

Social Presence

• Early research began on study of communication medium• Much modern research centers on the

online environment• Little research, at this time, on mobile the

mobile environment

A Mobile Social Presence

• Students can participate in coursework without using a desktop• Mobile tech allows communication to go beyond simple voice

or text based • Mobile tech is a tether that binds a new

generation of learners together with aconnectedness not possible in previousgenerations

A Mobile Social Presence

Mobile technology, with its ultimate connective/communicativecapability, has the potential to enhance the “realness” of a person’s presence in an online classroom.

The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly

Social NetworksSocial networks are a two edged sword:• They foster online presence

and build connections • They can destroy social presence and isolate

an individual from the groupUse of networks within a classroom environmentmust be carefully administrated.

Mobile Apps!

Cel.li

Podio

Evernote

Yammer

Join.me

DropBox

Google apps

MS 360

More apps/websites worth noting:

• Polleverywhere.com• Flikr.com• Orchestra-to-do• 37 signals campfire• Flow• Phuser• Self-destructable text notes

Thoughts and Questions