Mobile Devices as a Vehicle for Inclusive Educational Practices: A Case Study

Chrysoula Lazou, Maria Psychogiou

(Hellenic Ministry of Education, Greece)

Abstract: This chapter focuses on the importance of leveraging technology, and especially mobile devices, with the intent to ensure quality inclusive education opportunities for dislocated populations, such as migrants and refugees with limited or no knowledge of host country language. The report commences with a description of the new reality in Greece characterizedbythe unprecedented influx of refugees and migrants; the corresponding administrators’ consideration about their education; and a thorough literature review on how mobile technologies can facilitate inclusive educational practices. Subsequently, we present the findings of a survey conducted in 16 international schools and organizations in the USA with on-site interviews and classroomobservations as to adopt or adapt successful educational practices in this new context. Finally, the chapter describes the pilot implementation of these findings in the Greek context, in a long-term accommodation center (LTAC) in Kavala, Northern Greece. The reportconcludes that despite limitations, sharing expertise and applying flexible educational practices that leverage mobile technologies, when based on ground theoretical findings, is of utmost importance in an ever-evolving socio economic and political landscape.

Key words: inclusive education, refugees, mobile learning, language barriers, facilitator perspective