By: Stephanie Biro
While distractions within the classroom are not a new problem, the forms of distractions have significantly changed over recent years, shifting from doodling or daydreaming to text messaging or browsing the Internet. The use of smartphones has significantly increased over the last few years, with 86% of undergraduate students in the United States reportedly owning a Smartphone (Dahlstrom & Bichsel, 2014). Importantly, between 50% and 77% of students report using a smartphone daily to complete their schoolwork (e.g., Chen, Seilhamer, Bennett, & Bauer, 2015; Dahlstrom & Bichsel, 2014). One major concern regarding smartphone use in the classroom is that students may become distracted and disengaged from the course material. Unfortunately, research suggests that educators have been unsuccessful at controlling the use of smartphones in the classroom environment (Berry & Westfall, 2015). However, in order to limit a smartphones ability to distract, some educators have incorporated this technology into their lectures. In other words, it may be possible that increasing smartphone use in the classroom for learning purposes will not only limit the distractions caused by the device, but may also help to increase student engagement with the material.
One study found that students are more likely to use their smartphone in classes with a large number of students, and for those classes that met for longer periods of time (Berry & Westfall, 2015). Maybe more importantly, they found that students were less likely to engage in smartphone use during activities that required their active participation (e.g., discussions or watching video clips). Numerous professors have been utilising clickers to facilitate discussion in lecture-based courses, and these tools have been shown to increase student participation effectively (e.g., Ulbig & Notman, 2012). Schell, Lukoff, and Mazur (2013) found that the capacity to generate immediate feedback was crucial in order to identify any misunderstandings and to improve overall learning. More recently, smartphones have provided a more flexible and enhanced way to gather this feedback through the use of various response systems (e.g., Poll Everywhere, Kahoot). One major reason to consider incorporating techniques such as clickers and smartphone surveys into the classroom is that they promote active learning, or the mental manipulation of information, which has been found to be more effective than passive learning across a variety of university courses (e.g., Freeman et al., 2014).
Incorporating smartphones into tutorials as a learning tool is one way for TAs to increase student engagement and understanding of the material. These devices, along with current facilitation strategies, will help to promote peer collaboration in the tutorial setting. This encourages students to engage with the content that is being presented by having them discuss the definition of a key term, differentiate between similar theories or ideas, or relate old material to new concepts. For example, as an Enriched Support Program (ESP) Facilitator, I have found that using Poll Everywhere with practice multiple-choice questions is a great way to generate student discussion. This program is effective for two reasons: (1) answers can be set as anonymous and (2) responses appear on the screen in real-time. Anonymous responding removes any potential anxiety that a student may feel around submitting an incorrect response. The real-time response update allows students to see that others have chosen the same or different response, and students may be more likely to share why they made that decision, whether correct or incorrect. Such strategies promote deeper processing of the material as they lead students to explain, analyze, and defend their choice and build off each other’s points.
A few potential issues have been identified in terms of incorporating smartphones into the classroom (e.g., limited or no device, lack of technical support; Chen et al., 2015). One solution to the situation where students lack a smartphone would be to suggest that students work in pairs or groups to answer survey questions. This not only solves the problem, but also encourages students to discuss the content with their peers. Such approaches complement the recent findings of the scholarship of teaching and learning, which indicates that as the classroom becomes more interactive, students’ understanding of the material improves (e.g., Freeman et al., 2014). The major concern reported by students was that there might be a lack of technical support for using these programs with their specific smartphone (Chen et al., 2015). A possible solution would be to give students time during the lecture to familiarize themselves with the program through a test run and/or to make existing support materials readily available via the course learning management system. These steps will allow students to practice with the program and for the educator to deal with any potential issues prior to asking students to engage with the material.
Nevertheless, these potential issues are less of a concern for educators and TAs who are utilising smartphones as an engagement tool rather than a mechanism to grade their students. The use of smartphones in classroom and tutorial settings has the benefit of both limiting distraction and promoting active learning through more effective peer discussion. Given the increasing usage of smartphones among undergraduate students (e.g., Chen, Seilhamer, Bennett, & Bauer, 2015; Dahlstrom & Bichsel, 2014), the lack of success in controlling this use during class (Berry & Westfall, 2015), and the potential benefits such as increased engagement and understanding of the material, educators and TAs should consider incorporating smartphones into their learning environment.
References
Berry, M. J. & Westfall, A., (2015). Dial D for distraction: The making and breaking of cell phone policies in the college classroom. College Teaching, 63(2), 62-71. doi: 10.1080/87567555.2015.1005040
Chen, B., Seilhamer, R., Bennetter, L., & Bauer, S. (2015). Student’s mobile learning practices in higher education: A multi-year study. Retrieved from http://er.educause.edu/articles/2015/6/students-mobile-learning-practices-in-higher-education-a-multiyear-study
Dahlstrom, E., & Bichsel, J. (2014). ECAR Study of Undergraduate Students and Information Technology, Research report. ECAR. Louisville, CO.
Freeman, S., Eddy, S.L., McDonough, M., Smith, M.K., Okorafor, N., Jordt, H., and Wenderoth, M.P., (2014). Active learning increases student performance in science, engineering, and mathematics. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS), 111(23), 8410-8415. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1319030111
Schell, J., B. Lukoff, & E. Mazur. 2013. Catalyzing learner engagement using cutting-edge classroom response systems in higher education. Cutting-edge Technologies in Higher Education, 6, 233–61. doi: 10.1108/S2044-9968(2013)000006E011
Ulbig, S. G., & F. Notman. 2012. Is class appreciation just a click away? Using student response system technology to enhance shy students’ introductory American government experience. Journal of Political Science Education, 8(4), 352–71. doi: 10.1080/15512169.2012.729450