Relaciones entre metales “pseudo-totales”

Bednar et al. (1992) propose that “learning is a constructive process in which the learner is building an internal representation of knowledge, a personal interpretation of experience.” (p.30). This suggests that learning is an active process in which students construct meaning internally as part of the learning process. The evaluation of this process can be captured in the students’ reflective awareness of their own thinking, as this implies that students can monitor both the structure of knowledge development and also the process of constructing knowledge representation (Bednar et al., 1992). Furthermore, Dunlap & Grabinger (1996) suggest that successful students are able to analyse what they do in order to evaluate their learning. These students do this through the process of reflection.

Reflexivity in learning is awareness of knowledge construction (Cunningham, 1987). The process of reflection is about self-awareness of learning and it happens when “we experience or are shown a situation where our existing beliefs are inadequate, (so) our awareness of our own state of knowing is enhanced” (Duffy & Cunningham, 1997, p.181). Furthermore, reflection is the process of thinking which entails analysis and making judgment on what has happened in order to give new meaning to a situation or event (Dabbagh, 2005). According to Lin et al. (1999), “reflective thinking is an active, intentional, and purposeful process of exploration, discovery, and learning” (p.46) and reflective thinking

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includes in understanding of the learners’ own learning process. This process involves “experiencing understanding of oneself as a learner in variety of contexts; organizing, monitoring, and evaluating one’s learning to derive a renewed state of understanding about one’s performance” (Lin et al., 1999, p.46).

Hannafin & Land (1997) describe learning as a “dynamic process of ‘reflection- in-action’ where action is used to extend thinking and reflection is governed by the results of action” (p.170). This means there are actions and on-going thoughts about the concepts being learnt. The concept of reflection-in-action is also discussed by Schon (1983), who believes that reflection-in-action is a process of thought-based action, that is, thinking is not separate from doing but rather they complement each other. This means that reflection-in-action links a learner’s action with his or her thoughts about the consequences or feedback associated with the action (Schon, 1983). This shows that reflection is part of the process of learning through actions or activities.

The aim of teaching HE students to reflect on their thinking processes is for them to increase awareness of their own learning, and to use that awareness to adapt their thinking to other contexts (Lin et al., 1999). It is believed a tool such as the mobile phone could assist in this process, for example through review, display, prompts or even modelling social interaction between student peers. Learning activities that encourage learners to evolve a richer understanding of their knowledge (Cunningham, 1987). This means inducing learners to become active in mental activities that enable them to reproduce thought processes or invoke greater introspection during learning.

Learning activities which could be suited to the mobile phone and which could be designed for reflection include activities that provide opportunities for learners to reflect on their knowledge and experiences, offering the opportunity to reorganise and restructure knowledge. One recommendation for promoting reflection is to prompt students to review what they have done then analyse achievements or compare it with those of their peers (Wilson & Cole, 1996). Honebein, Duffy & Fishman (1993) discuss the need to generate and evaluate alternative perspectives for content from the syllabus as “constructivist learning focuses on skills and strategies, rather than facts and rote memorization” (p.106).

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This means there must be a space in the design of mobile learning activities, such as through the use of SMS, for students to discuss, argue, comment or support each others’ opinions. The process of reflection can create structures to retrieve and reorganise understanding. It constitutes a refinement phase of the learning process which could be made part of the syllabus. An example of a mobile learning activity that allows reflection would be students gathering pictures and videos through mobile phones, after which the students are asked to reflect on the usefulness of the media to them. Students could also reflect by commenting on the choice of pictures or videos of their peers.

Another effective reflection activity is when a learner “revisits the evidence of their conclusions in order to assess their validity, identify the limitations of their understanding, and clarify its applicability” (Edelson, 2001, p.379). This is because reflection requires perspective, and fostering activities that encourages learners to communicate about their activities and understanding could elicit real reflection. Mobile learning can be a tool that supports reflection on activities that promote enquiry either through record-keeping during the enquiry to provide concrete products for reflection, or by supporting reflective communication (Edelson, 2001). Kukulska-Hulme, Traxler & Pettit (2007) and Traxler (2009) propose that mobile learning allows for learning designs that provide for spontaneous reflection and self-evaluation.

Reflective activities for this research are those that firstly allow students to review their own learning processes and secondly that support the process of analyzing and making judgements to create new meanings, based on others’ perceptions.