The impact of smartphone use on learning effectiveness: A case study of primary school students

Jen Chun Wang; Chia-Yen Hsieh; Shih-Hao Kung

doi:10.1007/s10639-022-11430-9

The impact of smartphone use on learning effectiveness: A case study of primary school students

Educ Inf Technol (Dordr). 2023;28(6):6287-6320. doi: 10.1007/s10639-022-11430-9. Epub 2022 Nov 11.

Authors

Jen Chun Wang¹, Chia-Yen Hsieh², Shih-Hao Kung¹

Affiliations

¹ Department of Industry Technology Education, National Kaohsiung Normal University, 62, Shenjhong Rd., Yanchao District, Kaohsiung, 82446 Taiwan.
² Department of Early Childhood Education, National PingTung University, No.4-18, Minsheng Rd., Pingtung City, Pingtung County 900391 Taiwan.

Abstract

This study investigated the effects of smartphone use on the perceived academic performance of elementary school students. Following the derivation of four hypotheses from the literature, descriptive analysis, t testing, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA), Pearson correlation analysis, and one-way multivariate ANOVA (MANOVA) were performed to characterize the relationship between smartphone behavior and academic performance with regard to learning effectiveness. All coefficients were positive and significant, supporting all four hypotheses. We also used structural equation modeling (SEM) to determine whether smartphone behavior is a mediator of academic performance. The MANOVA results revealed that the students in the high smartphone use group academically outperformed those in the low smartphone use group. The results indicate that smartphone use constitutes a potential inequality in learning opportunities among elementary school students. Finally, in a discussion of whether smartphone behavior is a mediator of academic performance, it is proved that smartphone behavior is the mediating variable impacting academic performance. Fewer smartphone access opportunities may adversely affect learning effectiveness and academic performance. Elementary school teachers must be aware of this issue, especially during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The findings serve as a reference for policymakers and educators on how smartphone use in learning activities affects academic performance.

Keywords: Elementary education; Human–computer interface; Learning effectiveness; Media in education; Smartphone use.

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