A Generalized Approach for Context-Aware Adaption in Mobile E-learning Settings

Abstract

Mobile devices like smartphones and tablet PCs made it possible to access educational offers spatially and temporally unbounded. This in turn has made it possible to use time periods for learning that were unavailable before. However, learners have different prior knowledge and preferences, and are in different situations. That's why contextual information needs to be used to adapt educational offers to the learners' individual needs and characteristics. Several research initiatives have identified a plethora of contextual information that might be used for that purpose. But, not all educational scenarios benefit from all contextual information or adaptations. Thus, this paper aims to identify relevant contextual information by analyzing several different educational scenarios from a pedagogical point of view. This provides a foundation for systematical development of a framework for context-aware learning settings.