Learner research and systems trials | Project team login | Deliverables

The collaborating organisations

Why do we need to collaborate?

The m-learning partners are commercial or research organisations and our staff do not routinely work with young people in the project’s target audience. Therefore we have recruited some collaborating organisations who work with, support and, in some cases, teach the kind of young people we hope may find mobile learning more attractive and absorbing than traditional education or training. The COs include schools, colleges, charities, local authorities, local learning and work partnerships and mentoring organisations with an interest in reaching out to young people who have not succeeded at school, do not find traditional further education and training options attractive and would benefit from improving their literacy, numeracy and/or life skills. Go to list of COs.

The role of the COs

The role of the collaborating organisations (COs) involves working in partnership with the LSDA and the m-learning consortium to explore how mobile learning equipment, systems and learning materials can be used to help young people to develop and achieve life long learning objectives including improving their literacy and numeracy skills. COs have been asked to:

Identify and recruit young people, aged 16 to 24 and not in full time education, with whom the CO has an existing relationship e.g. to whom the CO offers a service such as courses, advice, mentoring, a drop in centre, etc.
identify one or more staff/volunteers to act as mentors to the learners and to assist with our research and system trials. These should be individuals with an established relationship with the young people.
Where the CO normally provides education or training services to the young people, we are exploring with their staff/volunteers:

Technology enhanced learning, with appropriate support provided by experience educators, can provide a convenient, personal and non-judgmental alternative to traditional education
All of us involved in education and training have a duty to break down barriers to learning including physical, psychological, cultural and financial barriers.