Hemsworth Arts and Community College near Pontefract uses pupil data as the foundation of its personalised learning programme for students. Maths teacher Kate Roche demonstrates how she uses a traffic light system in the classroom to keep herself and pupils informed of their progress. The schools data manager keeps records updated on the internal computer database. The head of maths and assistant principal analyse the data to evaluate the Year 11 students.Parental involvement is integral to the school’s personalised learning programme.

Much of the literature theorising mobile learning emphasises the importance of context with physical and social contexts identified to date. Our work to design and implement authentic mobile simulation activities using SMS text messaging suggests that a third context may also be important. This is a virtual context, the learner-created cognitive space within which the activity takes place. The arrival of a message during a simulation activity will disrupt the real world physical and social contexts in which the learner finds themselves and transfer them into the virtual context.

This paper focuses on the broad outcome of an action research project in which practical theory was developed in the field of networked learning through case-study analysis of learners’ experiences and critical evaluation of educational practice. It begins by briefly discussing the pedagogical approach adopted for the case-study course and the action research methodology. It then identifies key dimensions of four interconnected developmental processes that were associated with ‘learning to learn’ in the course’s networked environment.

This paper draws on case-study data in order to illustrate and discuss the extent to which these two approaches are helpful in informing our understanding of the motivating features of using mobile devices for informal learning.