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Smartphones usage in the classrooms: Learning aid or interference?

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Muhammad Anshari at Universiti Brunei Darussalam
Muhammad Anshari
Mohammad Nabil Almunawar at Universiti Brunei Darussalam
Mohammad Nabil Almunawar
Masitah Shahrill at Universiti Brunei Darussalam
Masitah Shahrill
Danang Kuncoro Wicaksono at Sultan Sharif Ali Islamic University
Danang Kuncoro Wicaksono
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Abstract and Figures

Many educational institutions, especially higher education institutions, are considering to embrace smartphones as part of learning aids in classes as most students (in many cases all students) not only own them but also are also attached to them. The main question is whether embracing smartphones in classroom teaching enhances the learning or perhaps an interference. This paper presents the finding of our study on embracing smartphone in classroom teaching. The study was carried out through a survey and interview/discussion with a focus group of students. We found that they use their smartphones to access teaching materials or supporting information, which are normally accessible through the Internet. Students use smartphones as learning aids due many reasons such as they provide convenience, portability, comprehensive learning experiences, multi sources and multitasks, and environmentally friendly. They also use smartphones to interact with teachers outside classes and using smartphones to manage their group assignments. However, integrating smartphones in a classroom-teaching environment is a challenging task. Lecturers may need to incorporate smartphones in teaching and learning to create attractive teaching and optimum interaction with students in classes while mitigating or at least minimising distractions that can be created. Some of the challenges are distraction, dependency, lacking hands on skills, and the reduce quality of face-to-face interaction. To avoid any disturbances in using smartphones within a classroom environment, proper rules of using smartphones in class should be established before teaching, and students need to abide to these rules.
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Education and Information
Technologies
The Official Journal of the IFIP Technical
Committee on Education
ISSN 1360-2357
Volume 22
Number 6
Educ Inf Technol (2017) 22:3063-3079
DOI 10.1007/s10639-017-9572-7
Smartphones usage in the classrooms:
Learning aid or interference?
Muhammad Anshari, Mohammad Nabil
Almunawar, Masitah Shahrill, Danang
Kuncoro Wicaksono & Miftachul Huda
1 23
Your article is protected by copyright and all
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publication is available at link.springer.com”.
Smartphones usage in the classrooms: Learning
aid or interference?
Muhammad Anshari
1
&Mohammad Nabil Almunawar
2
&
Masitah Shahrill
3
&Danang Kuncoro Wicaksono
4
&
Miftachul Huda
5
Received: 21 June 2016 /Accepted: 12 January 2017 /Published online: 19 January 2017
#Springer Science+Business Media New York 2017
Abstract Many educational institutions, especially higher education institutions, are
considering to embrace smartphones as part of learning aids in classes as most students
(in many cases all students) not only own them but also are also attached to them. The
main question is whether embracing smartphones in classroom teaching enhances the
learning or perhaps an interference. This paper presents the finding of our study on
embracing smartphone in classroom teaching. The study was carried out through a
survey and interview/discussion with a focus group of students. We found that they use
their smartphones to access teaching materials or supporting information, which are
normally accessible through the Internet. Students use smartphones as learning aids due
Educ Inf Technol (2017) 22:3063–3079
DOI 10.1007/s10639-017-9572-7
*Muhammad Anshari
anshari.ali@ubd.edu.bn
Mohammad Nabil Almunawar
nabil.almunawar@ubd.edu.bn
Masitah Shahrill
masitah.shahrill@ubd.edu.bn
Danang Kuncoro Wicaksono
16mr701@siswa.unissa.edu.bn
Miftachul Huda
halimelhuda@gmail.com
1
Centre for Lifelong Learning, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong, Brunei
2
School of Business & Economics, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong, Brunei
3
Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah Institute of Education, Universiti Brunei Darussalam, Gadong, Brunei
4
Universiti Islam Sultan Sharif Ali, Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei
5
Universiti Teknologi Malaysia, Skudai, Malaysia
Author's personal copy
many reasons such as they provide convenience, portability, comprehensive learning
experiences, multi sources and multitasks, and environmentally friendly. They also use
smartphones to interact with teachers outside classes and using smartphones to manage
their group assignments. However, integrating smartphones in a classroom-teaching
environment is a challenging task. Lecturers may need to incorporate smartphones in
teaching and learning to create attractive teaching and optimum interaction with
students in classes while mitigating or at least minimising distractions that can be
created. Some of the challenges are distraction, dependency, lacking hands on skills,
and the reduce quality of face-to-face interaction. To avoid any disturbances in using
smartphones within a classroom environment, proper rules of using smartphones in
class should be established before teaching, and students need to abide to these rules.
Keywords Educationtechnology.Educat ion & Technolo gy.Smartphone.Learningaid.
Learning interference
1 Introduction
A smartphone is a mobile phone that can perform many tasks and computations like a
personal computer. It is slowly replacing the old cell-phone, as it is equipped with a
powerful operating system (multi-tasking) along with a myriad of useful applications
(Apps) and high speed data communication capability. Hence, browsing the Internet or
running Internet-based applications is intrinsic. A smartphone is a powerful handheld
computer with an intrinsic connection mobile networks (Davies 2015; Rouse 2015;
Anshari and Alas 2015).
A smartphone is so handy and is becoming a multipurpose mobile device that can
assist people to perform their daily as well as professional activities. Smartphones are
used by many to access information and knowledge from the Internet. In fact, some
people develop knowledge by accessing a pool of knowledge from the Internet using
their smartphones. Hence, smartphones can definitely be taken as to enhance education
(Almunawar et al. 2015). Nowadays, students can access information and knowledge
easily from the Internet and they can also have discussions in social networks and get
quick answers from peers, lecturers or even experts. Gerlich et al. (2010) found that
many college students use smartphones to help them study.
The reliance on smartphones is quite evident and the usage of smartphones amongst
youth and students is rapidly growing (Abeele 2016). They spend a lot of time online
and most of them prefer connection to the Internet using their smartphones instead of
other devices (García-Ormaechea 2014). Students normally bring their smartphones in
classrooms and lectures. In fact, some students capture the lecture notes or other notes
written or given by their lecturers using their smartphone cameras. Lecturers can even
turn smartphones to become learning aids in class (Anshari et al. 2016). Some
discussions or idea generations can be enhanced using a social network, which are
accessible using smartphones, in a class to attract more participation from the students.
However, smartphones at the same time can also create a serious disturbance during
lectures if students play with their smartphones instead of paying attention to lectures
(Anshari et al. 2015b). This leads us to the main question of this research: do
smartphones create better learning experiences or learning interferences?
3064 Educ Inf Technol (2017) 22:3063–3079
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