How do Students Feel about Mobile Technology?

Students say the more mobile tech, the better

“Mobile learning” is one of the most commonly-heard phrases in education today, and research continually reinforces the fact that this learning approach has a positive impact on students.

Ninety percent of students in grades 4-12 said they believe tablets will change the way future students learn, and 89 percent said that using tablets makes learning more fun, according to a new study of more than 2,250 students from Pearson and Harris Poll.

Eighty-one percent of students said they agree that using tablets in the classroom helps them personalize their learning, and 79 percent said tablets help them perform better in class.

When it comes to tablet use, in 2014 forty-two (42) percent of students in grades 9-12 use tablets regularly, up from 33% in 2013!  When it comes to smartphones, 75 percent of grades 9-12 students use smartphones regularly in 2014, up from 60% in 2013.

Despite school districts’ goals to go mobile, either through BYOD or through a one-to-one initiative involving a district-owned device, only 1 in 6 students (16%) attends a school that gives every student a laptop or tablet.  In contrast, 51 percent of students said they think it is important that their schools give them a laptop for one-to-one learning.  Overall, students want mobile, and they want more of it: substantial majorities report that they would like to use mobile devices in the classroom more often than they do now.

Part of the barrier to this is access. Sixty-two percent of students have wireless internet access at school, versus 93 percent of surveyed students who have wireless access at home.