THE USE AND EFFECT OF SMARTPHONES IN STUDENTS

1.1Introduction
The emergence of information and communication
technology (ICT)and internet facilities have drastically affected
almost every fact of human life. Currently, it is greatly evident
in the way of teaching and learning. Nowadays, smartphones
have become a part of every person’s life. Globally people
around the world have adopted this new and exciting
technology as one of the most important required facilities in
their everyday globally, the explosion of smartphones and its
related devices has greatly transformed teaching and learning
in developed nations where developing nations are not the
exception.

The proliferation of these facilities has changed the style of

learning whereby students or learners no more solely depend
on paper-based materials. The introduction of the internet led
to the emergence of smartphones which enables learning to
take place irrespective of the geographical location or period
of time.

According to technogenic (2019) “A smartphone is a mobile

with highly advanced features. A typical smartphone has a
high – resolution touch screen display, web browsing
capabilities, and the ability to accept sophisticated
applications. Smartphones as a smart device used for fast
access to knowledge, geared towards students achieving their
teaching and learning and academic research objectives.

The purpose of the study is to determine undergraduates

distance learning students’ use of smartphones and its effect
on learning.

It is unconcealed that almost every distance student of a

smartphone. Hence it very imperative to fathom the use of
smartphones among the distance learning students and its
effect on their learning activities.

1.2 Objectives of the study

The study was based on the following objectives.

1.To find out the students’ perceived ease of use of a

smartphone in learning activities.
2.To determine the perceived usefulness of smartphone in
students’ academic achievement.
3.To investigate the effect of the use of a smartphone in
students’ learning activities.
4.To investigate the factors that inhibit the use of a
smartphone as a learning tool.

1.3 The concept of the smartphone in mobile learning

Mobile learning is a mode of learning whereby mobile

computing coupled with wireless technology help learning to
take place anywhere and anytime.
Smartphones support learning either offline or online. Offline
access enables users of smartphones to store any form of
learning materials such as pdf, word, excel, animations,
symbols, irrespective of the geographical location. Internet
access is needed for learners like students and teachers to
visit websites to meet their information needs. The
exploration of the smartphone has changed the dynamic of
students learning activities.

Students can carry a whole semester’s learning materials on a

small smartphone while gives students the latitude to learn in
an area which, on a normal circumstance, will require a laptop
or other related form of a computer. For instance, a student
sage of and marketplace to mention but a few. It also enables
students to register courses online, take a quiz or semester
through the use of an assigned or registered

1.4 Smartphones usage in distance education

It is obvious that mobile learning can be considered as the

central hub to enhance distance education. distance
education has always grown on the wings of technology.
Needs of students becomes so sophisticated that they refuse
to carry heavy weight laptop or books, and they save
everything in their phones. The study revealed that the usage
of smartphones related with distance education helps to
increase students learning, social interactions, collaborative
learning, and socialization of students, etc. it was postulated
in the same study that in the coming decade smartphones will
be a main learning tool in the adoption of mobile learning
across the global and there is evidence in developing countries
complementing mobile learning to its convention mode of
teaching and learning. In effect, this has enhanced distance
education programs been offered by higher education.

1.4 students’ perceived Ease of use of smartphones in learning

activities.
Perceived ease of use has been found to be an important
determinant of technology usage, both in a direct and indirect
manner, and technology users have been proven to attempt
to minimize their cognitive effort on their behaviors. The
findings support the study of in which it was revealed that,
most respondents strongly disagree to the statement that I
find smartphones learning easy this is an indication that, the
students did not find it comfortable using a smartphone as a
supplement tool for learning. They will find it easy to use a
smartphone and this also enhances their perceived usefulness
of using smartphones for learning activities.

1.5 perceived usefulness of smartphone in student

achievement.

In a study conducted by on determinants impacting learners’

satisfaction and performance with smartphones in it was
revealed that one of the usefulness of smartphone is the
ability to enable users to study anywhere and at any time,
marking learning more attractive. The impact of using
smartphones on the academic performance of using a
quantitative methodology with sample size and data was
collected using a questionnaire. The study revealed that
smartphones help students to communicate with their
classmates as well as their courses mater/tutors.
1.6 Effect of the use of a smartphone in students learning
activities.

The postulated that the use of smartphone on students has

both a negative and positive effect depending on how it is
used. For instance, there is high propensity that students who
are glued to their smartphone check updates from their
studies and even at a lecture time when a lecturer is at the
peak of teaching. The concluded that the effect of
smartphones on activities on academic performance or the
learning of students is mixed with challenges.
Further in the same study it was found intruding calls may
come in during learning. This factors greatly distract learning
by driving away their focus from the core purpose of being in
class or a place or moment set aside for effective studies.

2.1 cellphone
With the growing number of mobiles, the behavioral
aspects have sweeping effects on the lives of individual. the
phenomenology of individuals in social and personal spheres
have also changed a lot. The individual present and equipped
with a mobile is split into two, they are present in body but
their attention, mind and senses are drawn elsewhere with a
ring by their communication network. People are not very
sure of their own accessibility at a place at a given point of
time as a ring from virtual communication may require his/her
presence to a different location that too within no time. What
actually happens that people decide is to prefer their own life
styles are navigated to depend on a sense of belonging
determined by others. what affects actuality is that our sense
of loyalty to places, persons, sense of identification,
familiarity, stability, and security so on is compromised to a
large extent. It has been found that people are spending less
and less time with engaging intrapersonal and interpersonal
activities and this same nostalgia feeling has also become
considerably drawn with advent of mobile phones.
2.2 common use of mobile phone by people
Now days the use of mobile has become very common. This
usage has created a new environment in which even the
people from the lower strata are using the mass media gadget
freely. The changed took place of one’s relation with space
through the widespread use of the mobile has become the
premise which will also illuminate the role of this instrument
in the evolution of democratic society.

3.1 Objectives
1.To understand the pattern of mobile phone usage in
different age group of youth.
2. To understand gender difference among pattern.
 3. To examine the impact of mobile phone and
technology on habits of youth.

3.2 Age wise distribution

Categories frequencies percentage
17-23 94 47%
24-30 106 53%
total 200 100%

A total of 200 participants randomly selected for the present

study. They were all belonging to two age group 17-23 years
and other were from 24-30 years of age. Out of total
participants (N-200)

3.3 Gender wise distribution

Age group Gender frequencies percentage
17-23 years female 29 30.85
male 65 69.15
total 94 100
24-30 years female 31
male 75
total 106
total female 60 30
male 140 70
total 200 100

4.1 Impact of mobile phone in student life

In the 21st century everything is in the palm of our hands.
Technology has reached its peak and its still developing to a
new every day. The main examples of technology are mobile
phones, television sets, computers, electric cars. The smallest
piece of technology can cause a big change in our daily life.

The mobile phone as we said in the examples is one of the

fastest growing technologies in the last few decades. It started
as a device to just dial and receive calls.
But two decades later many manufactures have built mobile
devices which not only allows you to dial and receive a call but
also to listen to music. Click pictures, check your health status,
etc. and as mobile phones have become more affordable,
everyone in today world carries one or two phones on time
It is a must for students who are studying in schools or collage
to have mobile phones nowadays because of the new world
pandemic. As their academic curricula are to be started or
continued online. Not everyone can afford a laptop or a
computer, so a mobile being a cheaper alternative takes the
space for the computer in the online lecture.

Students have an upper hand when they have the convenience

of the mobile device. Not just for the online lectures they can
also use it for entertainment purposes like movies, games,
social media, etc.

Due to the increase in the number of mobile phone users in the

younger generation. Companies have started to develop their
mobile version in the form of an application that is more user-
friendly and lets people stick to the app longer increasing the
media used for the students.

Mobile phones are both a curse and a boon to the newer

generation as a lot of these phones when being used for
education and entertainment purposes. Also influences a lot of
ill habits in the younger generation like watching pornography,
blackmailing others for their good, increase in cybercrime, etc.

Mobile phone can play an amazingly good rote in the hands of

the younger generation with help of growing social influence
and the new ideas that occur daily in the minds of the younger
people. The mobile phone can be a good device to start a new
business online.

Moreover, as it easy to get access to the mobile phone for the

students it has caused an exponential growth for the eLearning
companies with sites like LinkedIn people can connect who
have a similar business or who are looking for jobs to start their
way into the career path.

Young students who are looking to get an education, for the

mobile phone is really helpful as the online lectures which are
conducted by the schools the collage and the coaching classes
can be easily attended on the mobile phone.

The mobile phone has made learning easy for the masses as it
fits in your hands and you can attend the lectures where ever
you are. The mobile has even made it possible for the working
people to pursue their academics if due to some reason it was
left incomplete.

A student can be anyone right from a child who starts to learn

from day one of school to the working professional who is
ready to invest his time and money to continue to pursue his
incomplete education.
The use of the mobile phone for education in a student’s life
was important even before the pandemic world students use
their mobile phones to carry digital notes instead of taking
xerox. Its easier when they want to take a survey.

And most importantly mobile phones are very convenient when

it comes to research for a project when you don’t have a laptop
or computer handy now with the entire transaction from offline
teaching to eLearning due to the pandemic. It is safe to say that
some of the trends which were set by the eLearning platform
will stay even in the post- pandemic world trends like using
google form for online tests, use of digital notes, and
prerecorded lectures for revision.

Today, the source for knowledge has diversified and one of the
ready sources is the internet. Having a mobile phone on their
person all the time can help students check out things in a
more fun way which will help them learn it fast.
If there is any doubt in the mind of a student about something
that the teacher was teaching the student can clear their
doubts immediately. There are so many applications in the app
store for students which means the student can get help from
an app for a subject which he/she lacks in some areas.
4.2 Most of these applications are free of change
And students these days learning from these prerecorded
lectures then learning from a book. Plus, you can carry your
mobile phone with you wherever you go even when you are on
a vacation.

About health, research shows medical apps are important to

support the health of young people. Such as managing
diabetes. And apps need to be accessed during school hours. A
mobile device works wonders when used correctly by the
student.

Mobile phone serves many important functions. Digital literacy

is a critical aspect of young peoples schooling and research
shows mobile phones can play a role in supporting such
learning.

Its important students learn with these devices so they can

effectively participate in the workforce. Also, these phones
provide a link between students and their parents, which has
an important role to play in ensuring their safety.
4.3 6 ways to use students smartphones for learning
1. create short videos
Videos of 5 – 20 seconds can give students a way to
exercise their creative muscles. Students can create their own
videos on the fly using their own mobile devices, or they can
create one part of a video compilation that the teacher can
then string together. Videos can express any type of learning in
any style, from music videos to interviews, book trailers,
historical reenactments, tutorials and stop animations.
2.scan QR code
QR code offer instant access to video, audio, websites
contact info or any brief text. I use them to link German texts in
a classroom serener hunt. Most phones now come with QR
code readers installed, but if you students have a phone
without one, there are plenty of free QR code reader apps.

While anything with QR codes will take a bit more effort to

create, students love the twist on learning, QR codes can also
generate answer keys beside each problem to allow students to
self – check their work. The codes can also link to websites or
educational YouTube clips that provide more information.

My favorite use for QR codes is the scavenger hunt. Students

choose the correct answer to solve a riddle or answer a
question. If they choose the correct answer, the associated QR
code will lead them to directions that tell them how to reach
the next question. Students are engaged by both the
technology and by the game – like activity.

3.Access an online dictionary and thesaurus

Once students learn how to use dictionary apps and
websites efficiently, the difference in their work is spectacular.
As a German teacher, I find it is incredibly helpful for students
to be able to rapidly double – check whether a noun is
masculine, neutral, or feminine on pons or LEO. Question about
a verb conjugation? Go to LEO (for German). Confusion about a
phrase in a text, or double – checking the use of a word in an
essay? Tried of using the same word over and over again? Find
synonyms in many languages at open thesaurus

4. collaborate and share with pallet and twitter.

I grouped these two tools together because they both

increase student participation and allow teachers to gather real
– time feedback from students about their learning. Both pallet
and twitter are more comfortable communication tools for shy
students to respond to in class questions or participate in
brainstorming sessions, yielding a great deal of insightful
information.
5.listen to podcasts and read the news

For the voracious student who wants to keep learning outside

of class, the struggling learner who needs more exposure and
everyone in between, smartphones provide instant access to
civics, social studies, English, psychology, math, foreign
language and science related media sources, including journals,
newspapers, online news sites, podcasts, and more.

6.use the apps, obviously

Many mobile apps, such as Merize for languages and

vocabulary, make learning instantly accessible. But don’t limit
your students to the purely educational apps. Get creative and
let them have some fun with games. For instance, you could
change the language setting of a popular game like trivia crack
to give students language practice while they have fun.
Polling applications, such as poll everywhere, are also useful for
collecting direct feedback from both students and teachers
during class and delivering the data in a way that’s more
accessible and organized than the classic exit ticket.
And those are just two examples. Play with the app store to
yield thousands of options for a variety of content areas.
4.4 advantages of cell phones for students

1. Communication
Cell phones provide a convenient and direct way for
parents to contact their children when they are at school,
and vice versa. For example, if a parent is going to be
working late, he can contact his child via text message to
let her know. similarly, students can use their cell phones
to let friends know they are running late or to ask them
about homework they might have missed.

2.emergencies
If a student falls ill or is in danger, it is beneficial to be
carrying a cell phone so he can contact someone
immediately. For example, if a student is walking alone in
the dark and feels unsafe, a cell phone will enable her to
contact someone to pick her up and drive her home. Or if
a student is badly injured at a sporting event, other
students can call an ambulance or a doctor.

3.time keeping
Cell phones are also a useful time – keeping tool, they
allow students who don’t have a watch to keep track of
the time so they can be punctual to their lessons, and
phone have an alarm function to make sure they wake up
on time each morning. Cell phones also have a calendar
feature that students can use to input homework
assignments and important dates to remind them to keep
on top of their school work.

4.silence feature
Although cell phones could be disruptive during lessons
if they were turned on, most phones have a silent feature
that means they can be left on and fully functioning
without the audio disturbing anyone.

5.productivity
Mobile phone help organizations stay on top of
businesses 24/7. Mobile phones allow business men and
women to contact business on the road, in the air, and
anywhere else that has a cell signal, at any time of day.
Mobile conference calling allows partners to meet via the
phone while travelling. Applications on phones, such as
calendars, not keepers, voice recorders, and alarms, all
help people stay organized and on time. If you are late or
stuck in traffic, you can use your mobile phone to call the
boss.
 4.5 disadvantages of mobile phone for students

1.playing games most of the time

Student’s age is a kind of playing age. Even though they
concentrate on their studies their mind goes to play
station, Xbox, Wii, computers and mobile phones.
Nowadays I saw lots of students who are distracted by
mobile phones. I think they love it because they can
download so many games. So, what will happen to the
students who have their own mobile phone? simply they
will try to play games. They are children, so they have to
play games as we did in our childhood. But everything has
some limit. If a student is playing games all the time, then
it is better to take the phone away from them. Their
studies and other useful activities are destroyed by the
mobile phones. But if they play games once in a while,
then it’s totally fine.

2. Involvement in unwanted things

In today’s world, mobile phones may change student’s
habits. Through mobile phones, you can search lots of bad
stuff. Now days almost all the students are addicted to
porn videos and some other porn activity websites. In the
21-sit century, the sexual activities and violent acts are
considerably growing day by day. That is really bad. This is
 why we can see lots of students with cigarettes and drugs.
This is one of the major flews with the rise of technology. I
met lots of parents who got disappointed with their
children’s behavior, so I advise the parents, please don’t
allow your children to use mobile phones if you find
something harmful.

3. Sleepless night and fatigue

When students are playing games on mobile phones,

they don’t feel the time passing because they concentrate
fully on the game. Most of the students choose night time
for playing games so that no one will disturb them. So,
they play till 2 or 3 in the early morning unless parents
come and short at them to sleep. Some students choose
the sleeping time for chatting with friends. Chatting also
makes them go to bed very late. Do you know what
happens if they sleep late? Next day they get tried and find
it hard to concentrate on their subjects. So, students must
sleep as soon as they finish their homework and dinner so
that they would start the next day fresh and confident.

4. Disturb other students

Mobile phones can disturb other students in two ways.
One is when there is an important lecture going on and if
your mobile phone rings during that time, it will disturb the
whole class. Most of the students put their mobile phones in
silent mode, but some students don’t care about it. So the
ringing tone completely disturbs others and the lecturer.
Another one, some students want to have a mobile phone,
but their parents don’t allow them to have one. Such
students get frustrated when they see another student
having a mobile phone.

5.Reduced time with family

This is another major disadvantage of having a mobile phone

by a student. Before these phones and technology, students
spent plenty of time with their family. Now students spend
their free time with the mobile phones, either playing games
or chatting with the friends via mobile phones. They have no
idea about how much family is important in their life.
Spending time with the family is one of the most important
things for everyone and we can learn more good stuff when
we freely talk with our family. So, parents, at least, bring
your kids together at dinner time and have your meals
together on one table. A family chain is very important and
tries to make them understand that.
Thank you