OK, “Mobile Existence” isn’t a great term (I just made it up), but then Mobile Learning as we knew it is essentially obsolete – the ‘stone age’ of mobile experience – relative to where we’ll be very, very soon as the advanced capabilities of smart phones mesh together with 5G networks, the Internet of Things (IoT) and the rocket fuel of Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Gartner’s Top Ten (below) refers to this trend as “Spatial Computing” (an even worse term IMHO) but this is all so new that a more relatable term hasn’t emerged yet.
Opportunity Statement:
You’ve already seen how AI is starting to transform the digital tools you use, but just wait until your smartphone or wearables begin to interact and negotiate with the world around you as you move through it, generating affordances rather than just connecting with them. The potentials for learning are almost unimaginable.
Sources:
Gartner Top Ten Technologies 2025: Spatial Computing
The interconnections between digital platforms is increasing with each iteration and demonstrates the capacity for growth and learning within a network. Understanding how to design learning spaces — whether they be digital, physical, or a blend — to optimize these interconnection through the effective use of hardware and software is key. Technology should transform learning, making it more impactful and relevant to a learner’s context to support growth, success, and a positive self-image within their community — whether that community be local, regional, national or global.
My concern as a teacher is with how these interconnections are being designed and by whom. Are they being designed by humans from diverse backgrounds, to create access for as many as possible — with compassion and current learning theories in mind; or are they designed to as be profitable and marketable as possible on a global scale? On the local level, how will my school district react and respond to these shifts and challenges in technology?
The integration of interconnection across digital platforms is happening, but how it unfolds and impacts my capacity to be relevant in my teaching practice is my concern.