REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE

This chapter presents some literature and previous studies that are related to this

study about perceptions of the students in utilizing smartphones in their

classroom. It provides information of how it affects the academic performance of

the respondents. The researchers also categorized it into three:

L1. Positive utilization of smartphones in the classroom

When the educators are lecturing, the students are obliged to listen. For the

students to learn and be able to answer tests and examinations that would measure

their learning on a specific lesson or subject. But, sometimes, students pay

attention to their phones instead of listening, especially if they find it boring or

uninteresting, and that’s one of the reasons why students got low grades in class.

That’s also the reason why some schools restricted the students in bringing their

phones with them to school. However, in the study of Iqbal, S., & Bhatti, Z. A.

(2020)., the smartphones utilization showed that it plays a significant role to the

students in class.

According to the results of the study in the Teachers' Perceptions Regarding

the Effectiveness of Smartphones in Higher Education, smartphones are a

useful tool for recording videos and taking photos that students can use in
their assignments and presentations. For course-related content and

questions, teachers and students can communicate with one another after

work hours. In order to help their students understand complex subjects, the

professors said they could suggest additional reading material, videos, and

blogs. Smartphones are a helpful tool for teamwork and learning in groups,

according to the respondents. The perception from this study was also

supported by the study of Sharna (2022).

These smartphones are useful during classwork for snapping pictures of lectures,

difficult diagrams, live recording teacher explanations, etc. Thus, students can refer

to the stored data when needed. Without mobile phones, this wouldn’t have been

possible. Using this device helps students become familiar with modern skills.

Students with mobile phones are granted an advantage in the job market since

mobile phones play a key role in several careers. One of the positive impacts of

phones on students are the tools like alarms, dictionaries, calendars, encyclopedias,

notes, and watches, it makes learning easier. Sharna (2022).

The studies of Iqbal, S., and Bhatti, Z. A. (2020), and Sharna (2022), show how

smartphones of this generation have been a big help to the students in making their

studies easier and in a more compatible way than traditional learning. According to

the studies, smartphones are being used as a substitute for traditional educational

tools such as books, notebooks, and so on. Through the smartphone apps, there is
no need to bring dictionaries or encyclopedias because there are apps that can be

used instead of those. Even when taking notes, the smartphones made it easier for

the students. They don’t have to write down the lectures or the lessons being

discussed, as they can easily take a photo of the visual aids or the lessons and also

record the teachers’ discussion. Through this portable gadget, almost everything

has been possible. It made things way easier for people to live their lives,

especially for students. The study of Lenhart, A. (2012) also supported that the

smartphones are needed by the students in class for contacting their loved ones.

“Teenagers are great communicators. They communicate frequently with a wide

range of important people in their lives, including friends and peers, parents,

teachers, coaches, etc. This report investigates the communication tools used by

teenagers, with a particular emphasis on mobile devices.” Lenhart, A. (2012). In

addition, this study had findings of how much usage do the students consume to

their contacts. According to the results of the study, teenagers send texts to others

on a daily basis, and half do so. Specifically, on a daily basis with their peers. 63%

of all teenagers claim to text the people in their lives each day. Only 1% of

Teenagers claim to text fewer than once per week, and 26% of those respondents

(including those without cell phones) claimed that they never text anyone else.
A study by Lenhart, A. (2012) investigated one of the reasons why students use

their phones in class, which is texting, messaging, and calling. In order to send and

receive updates from their loved ones.

L1. Negative utilization of smartphones in the classroom

The smart phone has undoubtedly improved the quality of our lives.

However, this device might pose a threat to our youngsters,

the future of mankind. Parents and the society should strive to

minimize the side effects of this without cease, because

children are the most valuable future resources that cannot be

replaced with anything else. Park, C., & Park, Y. R. (2014).

People all over the world are addicted to their phones, wasting important hours

scrolling through social media and doing nothing productive. While using a

smartphone is entertaining, doing so during classes or study hours has a negative

impact on a student's academic performance. While many students use a mobile

phone to interact with their families after school, there are numerous reasons why

students should not be permitted to use their handheld devices during the school

day. According to a TeachHub article, because most cell phones have internet

connectivity, students can simply search up answers and perhaps cheat on

assignments and examinations. They can also take images of exam materials, trade
answers, and generally misuse them in similar ways. Because the school is

accountable for what happens on school grounds, it is even more crucial for

educators to control student phone use during the school day.

Scholars agree with this view; smartphones, according to them, are a tool that

prevents students from achieving their desired grade point average (GPA). One

researcher, for example, stated that students use smartphones to cheat in exams by

capturing photos and sharing them in a group, such as a WhatsApp group. This

form of cheating is highly prohibited at Ruaha Catholic University (RUCU), since

students are not permitted to enter an examination room with their smart phones.

It is noticeable that some K-12 educators and researchers believe that using

cellphones in class increases the probability of students cheating on examinations.

Students will be given high grades as a result of this deed, but they may not even

have learned the lessons.

Phones can go off during teaching sessions, disrupting the serenity of the learning

environment. Contrary to what most students think they cannot multi-task in the

classroom. Using a mobile phone to send or receive messages will hinder your

abilities to grasp all the information passed by the tutor. According to results

postulated by the Centre for Economic Performance at the London School of

Economics, students perform better academically when they do not have their
smartphones. The study shows that mobile phone, when banned in schools, is the

equivalent of adding an extra school week a year in terms of performance

improvements.

It is true that students get distracted when they use their smartphones during class.

Even though a teacher is teaching, someone is nonetheless utilizing a smartphone

due to their addiction to it. As a result, they are distracted and unable to pay

attention to what the teacher is saying. Because their focus is on their smartphones,

they sometimes lose track of what is going on around them.

This view of smartphone addiction as a behavioral addiction is supported only by

an exploratory study that mainly relies on self-report instruments (Billieux, J.,

Maurage, P., Lopez-Fernandez, O., Kuss, D. J., & Griffiths, M. D., 2015). Due to

the complexities of visualizing smartphone addiction, a secondary goal of this

meta-analysis is to offer an integrative framework for conceptualizing smartphone

addiction. This meta-analysis defines smartphone addiction within the context of

behavioral addiction by merging the definitions of behavioral addiction used by

Griffiths (2005), Shambare et al. (2012), and the DSM-5 criteria of substance-

related and addictive disorder (American Psychiatric Association, 2013). In this

meta-analysis, we define smartphone addiction as a condition in which the use of a

smartphone has fulfilled a deep need (dependency, habitual, and addictive

behavior) to the extent that the individual has difficulty conducting basic daily
activities without the simultaneous use of a smartphone, resulting in neglect of

other aspects of one's life. As a result, this concept influenced the inclusion of

papers in the meta-analysis.

According to the researchers cited, students' reliance on smartphones is growing

excessively. They may be unable to generate their own ideas because they are just

browsing the internet. Others can't function without cellphones, and it's not good

for them.

According to an expert, smartphones can assist students in their studies if they are

used appropriately. Most students become addicted to their smartphones and can

be found playing games, communicating with friends, watching movies, and doing

other things. Students who are always glued to their smartphones will not have

time to study, resulting in bad grades. According to research, most students utilize

these technological devices for enjoyment and waste their valuable time

networking and watching movies. This may cause them to waste valuable time.

Most students spend their time using their smartphones for unnecessary or non-

academic purposes. Others waste their spare time instead of just doing their

schoolwork by playing mobile games, surfing Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram,

watching Tiktok and YouTube, and doing other things that smartphones can do.
Using a smartphone for an extended period of time or continuously may have a

negative impact on a person's health; the person may experience headaches, and

frequent messages and calls disrupt students' concentration and focus on

completing their coursework, which will have a negative impact on their academic

performance (Abu-Shanab, 2015).

A study of smartphone users found that people who abuse their smartphones have

higher levels of depression, trait anxiety, and state anxiety than normal smartphone

users (Hwang et al., 2012). According to Berger (2013), students who use mobile

phones regularly have worse grades, greater anxiety, and feel less cheerful than

students who do not use mobile phones frequently. Smith (2013) discovered that

students with high anxiety and low GPAs use their phones more. Because they are

so reliant on their phones, the students express uneasiness when they have to be

away from them for an extended period of time.

Prolonged smartphone use can be harmful to students' mental and physical health.

Other students are unable to stop using it; in fact, they may become ill or depressed

if they are unable to use a smartphone. Students' health has suffered as a result of

their complete dependence on smartphones.

Smartphones are also enabling cyberbullying, which is causing havoc on

youngsters' mental health. Teens have been able to use technology to broaden their
reach and the degree of their harm. Cyberbullying is defined as "willful and

repeated harm inflicted through the use of computers, cell phones, and other

electronic devices." Basically, we are referring to incidents in which adolescents

use technology to harass, threaten, humiliate, or otherwise bother their peers. For

example, youth can send hurtful text messages to others or spread rumors using

smartphones or tablets.

Most students just make fun of everything, not realizing that what they're doing is

offending or affecting someone. For instance, there are students who like to snap

epic pictures of their friends, classmates, and other students, then show them to

others and laugh at them, which causes the individual in the picture to lose

confidence. Other students participating in this thought it was funny, but they had

no idea how it affected the person's mental health.

A study discovered that teenagers who dropped out of school simply due to

internet addiction were more likely to develop depression symptoms. It was also

shown that, while excessive internet use might lead to internet addiction in

teenagers, the internet gives youth valuable experiences. The use of digital

technology can also engage and encourage teenagers to pursue interests that are not

available to them at school. Internet use among teens should be supported but also

limited. Maintaining a good balance of technology, education, and social events is

the most effective method to prevent the likelihood of internet addiction among

teenagers and school dropouts.

Students' excessive use of smartphones, which leads to internet addiction, is also

detrimental to their academic performance. Others, instead of learning in school,

find it more difficult to learn since the internet, such as Facebook, Tiktok, and

mobile games such as Mobile Legends, distract their thoughts. They lose interest in

their studies, which causes them to drop out and become merely loiterers who are

preoccupied with using smartphones and doing useless stuff.

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