Incorporating information and communication technologies in teacher education: with special reference to mobile learning

In this digital information age, ICT has made huge impact on all spheres of human activity. ICT facilitates access to a wide range of information sources that enriches the possibilities for communication and collaboration. ICT has considerable potential for supporting a teacher in his everyday classroom role and their continuing training and development. It is the need of the hour to integrate technology in teacher education as an efficient tool to communicate, to create, to disseminate, store and manage information and to promote learner motivation and engagement. In India, teacher educational institutions are using ICT for education and skills development. ICT-enabled education has emerged to be the most viable solution not only due to its availability at a cost effective rate, but also due to the fact that an overwhelming proportion of knowledge seeking teachers and adults are born and socialized in the e-culture now may be termed as m-culture. Mobile devices are transforming the way we communicate, live and learn. Mobile learning has now become the part of a new learning landscape created by the availability of technologies supporting flexible, accessible, personalized education and creative thinking. The advent of mobile technologies has created opportunities for delivery of learning via mobile phones, laptops and PC tablets. Collectively this type of delivery is called m-learning. Whether it is blended learning or pure ICT enabled learning, the effective use of ICT is to be implemented in such a way that, it would facilitate acquisition and absorption of knowledge in a collaborative way only then the teacher education would be able to equip with Technological Pedagogical Content (TPC) knowledge. This paper focuses upon the integration of recent innovative practices of ICTs and mobile technologies in teacher education and how these technologies are changing the pedagogical skills required in teaching and learning process. Thus, mobile technologies holds the key to turning digital divide into digital dividends, bringing equitable and quality education for all.