The 2009 Horizon Report is a long-running qualitative research project that seeks to identify and describe emerging technologies likely to have a large impact on teaching, learning, research, or creative expression within learning-focused organizations. They report that Mobiles (aka Smartphones) are one of the top technologies for the coming year.

“The unprecedented evolution of mobiles continues to generate great interest. The idea of a single portable device that can make phone calls, take pictures, record audio and video, store data, music, and movies, and interact with the Internet — all of it — has become so interwoven into our lifestyles that it is now surprising to learn that someone does not carry one. As new devices continue to enter the market, new features and new capabilities are appearing at an accelerated pace. One recent feature — the ability to run third-party applications — represents a fundamental change in the way we regard mobiles and opens the door to myriad uses for education, entertainment, productivity, and social interaction.”

Rachel Smith from the New Media Consortium reported on the Horizon Report at the UNYOC Annual Meeting.

For more information on MLA’s Webcast see: http://www.mlanet.org/education/distance_ed/mobile/presenters.html.