Abstract:

Undergraduate university students often show little interest in the lectures and scarce or no participation in the classroom, especially in the context of the traditional expository teaching approaches. Nowadays, the use of technological devices in the classroom and the incorporation of new methodologies based on technological and pedagogical innovation can become an incentive for students, thus encouraging their interest and participation in the class discussions. Among the various technological devices available to university students today, the smartphone is the one that is generating the greatest transformational processes in the traditional educational methodologies applied so far. The use of these devices, associated with appropriate didactic alternatives and conceived for the development of learning, allows students to discover new teaching-learning processes, acquire and develop skills and abilities, integrate knowledge, and increase their motivation to learn. While the advantages of using mobile technology in the classroom have been viewed as remarkable by lecturers, it is essential to explore if students also perceive them as relevant, necessary and appropriate for the performance of the tasks and involvement with the course. In this regard, the present study aims to examine students’ perceptions, attitudes and intentions to use, both mobile technology, in general, and mobile educational applications, that create a friendly environment and allow the assessment of the acquired knowledge, as well as in-class participation. The results show positive attitudes of students towards the use of smartphones in the classroom, perceiving them as relevant and useful tools for the performance of their tasks, and showing interest in integrating them in their learning processes. The results have important implications for university teachers, as the findings offer guidance on the proper integration and use of mobile devices in the classroom.

Keywords:

Mobile technologies, mobile educational applications, student perception, student attitude, student intention to use.