Khóa luận tốt nghiệp a survey on the reality of using smartphone in learning english within third year english majored studentts at vietnam national university of agriculture

VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE

FACULTY OF EDUCATION AND FOREIGN LANGUAGES

BA THESIS
A SURVEY ON THE REALITY OF USING
SMARTPHONE IN LEARNING ENGLISH WITHIN
THIRD-YEAR ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS AT
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF
AGRICULTURE
NGHIÊN CỨU THỰC TRẠNG SỬ DỤNG ĐIỆN THOẠI
THÔNG MINH TRONG HỌC TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH
VIÊN NĂM BA NGÀNH NGÔN NGỮ ANH TẠI HỌC
VIỆN NÔNG NGHIỆP VIỆT NAM
Student

: PHAN THI HONG THAI

Student code : 621235
Major

: ENGLISH LINGUITICS

Supervisor

: 1. NGUYEN TAT THANG, PH. D
2. NGHIEM HONG NGAN, M.A

Hanoi – 2021

VIET NAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE

FACULTY OF EDUCATION AND FOREIGN LANGUAGES

BA THESIS
A SURVEY ON THE REALITY OF USING
SMARTPHONE IN LEARNING ENGLISH WITHIN
THIRD-YEAR ENGLISH MAJORED STUDENTS AT
VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF
AGRICULTURE
NGHIÊN CỨU THỰC TRẠNG SỬ DỤNG ĐIỆN THOẠI
THÔNG MINH TRONG HỌC TIẾNG ANH CỦA SINH
VIÊN NĂM BA NGÀNH NGÔN NGỮ ANH TẠI HỌC
VIỆN NÔNG NGHIỆP VIỆT NAM
Student

: PHAN THI HONG THAI

Student code : 621235
Major

: ENGLISH LINGUITICS

Supervisor

: 1. NGUYEN TAT THANG PH. D
2. NGHIEM HONG NGAN M.A

Hanoi – 2021

CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY
I, the undersigned, hereby certify my authority of the study project report
entitled A SURVEY ON THE REALITY OF USING SMARTPHONE IN
LEARNING ENGLISH WITHIN THIRD-YEAR ENGLISH MAJORED
STUDENTS AT VIETNAM NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF AGRICULTURE
submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Bachelor in
English Language. Except where the reference is indicated, no other person’s
work has been used without due acknowledgement in the text of the thesis.
Hanoi, 2021
Thai
Phan Thi Hong Thai

Approved by
SUPERVISOR

(Signature and full name)
Date: ……………………

i


TABLE OF CONTENTS
CERTIFICATE OF ORIGINALITY................................................................. i
TABLE OF CONTENTS .................................................................................... ii
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ................................................................................. iv
ABSTRACT ......................................................................................................... v
LIST OF ABBREVIATION .............................................................................. vi
LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES ................................................................ vii
Part 1: INTRODUCTION ................................................................................. 1

1. RATIONALE FOR THE STUDY .................................................................... 1
2. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY ................................................. 3
3. RESEARCH QUESTIONS (IN FORM OF QUESTIONS) ............................. 3
4. SCOPE OF THE STUDY ................................................................................. 3
5. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY .................................................................. 3
6. DESIGN OF THE STUDY ............................................................................... 4
Part 2: DEVELOPMENT................................................................................... 6
Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW ............................................................... 6
1.1. REVIEW OF PREVIOUS STUDIES (AT HOME/ABROAD) .................... 6
1.1.1. Smartphones usage by college students .................................................. 6
1.1.2. Using smartphones in learning English .................................................. 8
1.2. REVIEW OF THEORETICAL BACKGROUND ...................................... 10
1.2.1. The Concept of Mobile Learning ........................................................... 10
1.2.2. Smartphones overview ............................................................................ 11
1.3 SUMMARY .................................................................................................. 17
Chapter 2: METHODOLOGY ........................................................................ 18
2.1. RESEARCH GOVERNING ORIENTATION ............................................ 18
2.2. RESEARCH METHODS............................................................................. 18
2.2.1 Research methodology ............................................................................. 18

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2.2.2. Research setting/context and participants selection ............................ 18
2.2.3. Data collection and analysis ................................................................... 19
2.3. SUMMARY ................................................................................................. 22
Chapter 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION .................................................. 23
3.1. THE CURRENT STUDENT' USE OF SMARTPHONES IN LEARNING
ENGLISH ............................................................................................................ 23
3.2. THE EFFECTIVE METHODS WHEN USING SMARTPHONES FOR

LEARNING ENGLISH ...................................................................................... 28
3.3. EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF USING SMARTPHONES IN
LEARNING ENGLISH ...................................................................................... 32
3.4. SUMMARY ................................................................................................. 33
Part 3: CONCLUSION ..................................................................................... 34
1. RECAPITULATION ...................................................................................... 34
2. CONCLUDING REMARKS .......................................................................... 35
3. LIMITATION OF THE STUDY .................................................................... 36
4. RECOMMENDATIONS/SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY ......... 36
REFERENCES .................................................................................................. 37
APPENDIX ........................................................................................................ 42

iii


ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
First and foremost, I would like to express my heartfelt gratitude to the
teachers of the Faculty of Education and Foreign Languages at Vietnam
National University of Agriculture, who have directly taught and expanded my
knowledge throughout my university education. I would like to express my
gratitude to you for your patience and understanding over the last four years.
Especially, I would like to express my sincere thanks to my research
supervisors, Mr. Nguyen Tat Thang and Ms. Nghiem Hong Ngan. Without their
assistance and dedicated involvement in every step during my study’s process,
this paper would have never been accomplished.
I would also like to thank 120 third-year English students at Vietnam
National University of Agriculture. They kindly assisted me with the statistical
analysis in this dissertation.
Finally, I must express my very profound gratitude to my family and my
friends for providing me with unfailing support and continuous encouragement

in the past years. Every time I was ready to quit, you are always by my side and
gave me the best advice, and for that I will be eternally grateful. This thesis
stands as a testament to your unconditional love.
My thesis would also inevitably has shortcomings due to my limited
knowledge and professional qualified capacity. I look forward to hearing
suggestions from teachers and everyone else to help me improve.

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ABSTRACT
Smartphones act as an effective tool to learn English in the Covid-19
pandemic where a user can: take part in online learning program, find
information from many resources freely available on the Internet, use English
applications etc. as well as take part in entertainment activities. The aim of this
study was to investigate the reality of using smartphone in learning English. It
not only evaluates the current student' use of smartphones in learning English
but also suggests some effective method applied in students’ mobile phones for
the purposes of learning English. To complete this study, the researcher
collected survey’s data by using Google Forms. The authors designed an online
questionnaire and delivered it to students, and then student's responses were
collected and analyzed in Google spreadsheet and Microsoft Excel. There are
120 representatives from five classes, who are third-year English majored
students at VNUA located in Viet Nam took part in the survey. In order to
increase the accuracy and objectivity of the research findings, besides using a
questionnaire about the use of phones for students' English learning purposes,
the face to face interviews for the subset of students also were conducted with
the relevant conclusions drawn. Main findings of the study show that: 100% of
participants own a smartphone and more than 90% of all students use mobile
phones to study every day. The participants pointed out smartphone is an

English learning essential tool for them. In addition, participants also indicated
that they often use their smartphones to learn English such as using the
dictionary, taking online courses, etc. The issue of using smartphone in the
process of university study as an educational tool was investigated and proposed
to potentially expand a new teaching method in the education system.

v


LIST OF ABBREVIATION
Abbreviations

Meaning

3G

Third-generation technology

4G

Fourth-generation technology

Apps

Applications

BBC

British Broadcasting Corporation

E-book

Electronic book

Gbps

Gigabits per second

GPS

Global positioning system

LANs

Local Area Networks

LLT

Language Learning & Technology

LTE

Long Term Evolution

Mbps

Megabits per second

M-learning

Mobile learning

N, n

Number

OS

Operating system

PCs

Personal Communication Services

PDAs

Personal digital assistants

TNS

Tactical Navigation System

UK

United Kingdom

U.S

United states

VOA

Voice of America

VNUA

Viet Nam National University of Agriculture

Wi-Fi

Wireless Fidelity

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LIST OF TABLES AND FIGURES
Table 1.2 English proficiency level ................................................................... 19
Figure 1.2 Gender Distributions .......................................................................... 19
Figure 2.2 Smartphone usage .............................................................................. 23
Figure 3.2 Daily smartphone use (hour) ............................................................. 24
Figure 4.2 Percentage of types of activity........................................................... 25
Figure 5.2 Using smartphone to learn English .................................................... 26
Figure 6.2 Daily use smartphone for study English (hour) ................................. 26
Figure 7.2 English skills ...................................................................................... 27
Figure 8.2 Effective English learning methods ................................................... 28
Figure 9.2 English Applications .......................................................................... 29
Figure 10.2 English Learning Apps .................................................................... 30
Figure 11.2 Improve Four basic skill rate ........................................................... 31
Figure 12.2 Effective of learning English on smartphone . Error! Bookmark not
defined.

Figure 13.2 Advantages of learning English on smartphone ....Error! Bookmark
not defined.

vii


Part 1: INTRODUCTION
1. RATIONALE FOR THE STUDY
Recent developments in mobile technologies have produced a new kind of
device: a programmable mobile phone, the smartphone (JM. Raento, A.
Oulasvirta, and N. Eagle, 2009). The smart phone represents the current pinnacle
of mobile phone development, coupling phone capabilities with the additional
functionalities of a PDA (Lusekelo Kibona and Juma Mdimu Rugina,2015).
Unlike a feature phone, smartphone can store a vast amount of information and
keeps users connected through messaging services, email, video calls and social
networking apps, in addition to standard text messaging and phone calls. A
smartphone functions as a handheld portable PC for accessing and browsing the
web. In a research, Amy Herbert (2011) said that “Smartphones act as mobile
entertainment units where a user can: watch videos, listen to music, update
blogs, as well as audio and video blogging. Most importantly with a smartphone
one can access web 2.0, exactly like you the web you would use on the internet.”
According to the Vietnam Digital Advertising Market Report 2019 that
has just been released by Adsota, Vietnam currently has 43.7 million people
using smartphone devices, accounting for 44.9% of the total population of 97.4
million people. These figures have propelled Vietnam into the top 15
smartphone markets in the world, together with many developed countries such
as the United Kingdom, Japan, Germany, and other Southeast Asian countries
such as Indonesia. The number of smartphone users in Vietnam is rapidly
increasing, with the launch of many other low-cost smartphones from a
multitude of options. Smartphones are also playing an increasingly important

role and have become inseparable parts of Vietnamese people's daily lives. In
addition to the benefits of connecting and sharing information, smartphones also
participate in supporting learning and teaching in education. As indicated by

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Google information distributed from the miniature online investigation of
"Vietnamese customers 2014" led by TNS, the extent of individuals more than
16 years of age utilizing smartphones in Vietnam expanded by over 70%
contrasted with 2013, relating to 14 to 24 million individuals. The 16-24 age
bunch has the most noteworthy smartphone utilization charge (58%). This thing
for individuals in the maturing go (understudies, understudies) is the biggest
smartphone user in Vietnam. In the context of changing education, some new
forms of learning are becoming more prevalent and popular in educational and
teaching practices in other countries than traditional learning methods. These
include mobile learning with the ability to meet different learning needs, open
learning opportunities, the ability to access more data, unlimited learning space,
and develop digital skills for learners only with a smartphone. Mobile teaching
methods have also been popularized at the Viet Nam National University of
Agriculture. Especially in recent times, when the world in general and Vietnam
in particular have been affected by the Covid-19 pandemics, this method has
been applied more commonly at all educational levels. This shows that more and
more students are exposed to and study with smartphones, as well as an
increasing number of electronic devices. So the question is, do students often
use smartphones for their study? How do students study on their phones? These
are the questions that attract not only researchers’ and teachers’ interest but also
parents’ and students’. The study will look into these issues. However, due to
the time and impacts of the epidemic, the study will only focus on surveying the
use of smartphones in the English language study of third-year English language

students at the VNUA. Since the subject hadn’t been deeply researched before, I
hope that the findings of this thesis will complete and contributes to a better
understanding of the use of phones in students' study.

2


2. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
The research aims to investigate the reality of using smartphone in
learning English within third-year English majored students at VNUA.”
Objectives of the study are:
- To evaluate and analyze the current student' use of smartphones in learning
English.
- To suggest some effective methods when using smartphones for learning
English.
3. RESEARCH QUESTIONS (IN FORM OF QUESTIONS)
This study finds out answers to two research questions. The first question
is: “What is the current situation of using smartphones in learning English of
third-year English majored students at VNUA?” and the second question is: “
What are some effective methods when using smartphones for learning English
language?”.
4. SCOPE OF THE STUDY
The research will focus on surveying the third-year English students at the
Vietnam National University of Agriculture with a total of 120 students from
these classes K63ENGA, K63ENGB, K63ENGC, K63ENGD & K63ENGE.
The study will be carried out in 6 weeks, at semester 2, 2020-2021.
5. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
This research would be significant to the teachers, the students as well as
the English learners. Firstly, this is the first time this research has been
conducted within the third-year English majored students at VNUA. Secondly,

this survey can provide additional statistics about how many time students use
smartphone each day, some of the activities that take up a lot of student
smartphone time. Thirdly, this survey has also collected data and reports on
students' use of smartphone in learning English. Last but not least, this study can
provide students in particular and those who want to learn English, in general,

3


with more information on the reality of using smartphone to study English and
suggests some effective English learning methods.
6. DESIGN OF THE STUDY
The study consists of several parts as follows:
Part 1: INTRODUCTION
1. RATIONALE FOR THE STUDY
2. AIMS AND OBJECTIVES OF THE STUDY
3. RESEARCH QUESTIONS (IN FORM OF QUESTIONS)
4. SCOPE OF THE STUDY
5. SIGNIFICANCE OF THE STUDY
6. DESIGN OF THE STUDY
Part 2: DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. REVIEW OF PREVIOUS STUDIES
1.2. REVIEW OF THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
1.3. SUMMARY
Chapter 2: METHODOLOGY
2.1. RESEARCH GOVERNING ORIENTATION
2.2. RESEARCH METHODS
2.3. SUMMARY
Chapter 3: FINDINGS AND DISCUSSION

3.1. THE CURRENT STUDENT' USE OF SMARTPHONES IN LEARNING
ENGLISH
3.2. THE EFFECTIVE METHODS WHEN USING SMARTPHONES FOR
LEARNING ENGLISH
3.3. EVALUATE THE EFFECTIVENESS OF USING SMARTPHONES IN
LEARNING ENGLISH
3.4. SUMMARY

4


Part 3: CONCLUSION
1. RECAPITULATION
2. CONCLUDING REMARKS
3. LIMITATION OF THE STUDY
4. RECOMMENDATIONS/SUGGESTIONS FOR FURTHER STUDY
REFERENCES
APPENDIX

5


Part 2: DEVELOPMENT
Chapter 1: LITERATURE REVIEW
1.1. REVIEW OF PREVIOUS STUDIES (AT HOME/ABROAD)
In recent years, much research focusing on different perspectives on using
smartphone in learning English has been conducted and discussed. There are
several benefits ascribed to the use of smartphones in learning such as enhancing
the ability to find information, promoting learners “autonomy”, improving their
motivation, being effective in oral tasks as well as in teachers’ perception. The

findings from those previous studies seem relevant and useful to the present
study in terms of investigating the impact of smartphones on learning in general
and especially in learning English.
1.1.1. Smartphones usage by college students
Abroad
Hejab M. Alfawareh, Shaidah Jusoh (2014) pointed out in a study on
smartphone usage among university students in Saudi Arabia that their study
focused on the trends in smartphone usage for learning. Students from various
academic levels at Najran University, Saudi Arabia had participated in
completing survey questionnaires. These questions related to learning activities
such as login to academic portal, use Blackboard, download class materials,
taking and recording lecture notes using smartphones. Research indicates that
94.4% (n=305 /324) owned smartphones and used for normal usage. Based on
survey's result, smartphone usage was divided usage trends into two; normal
usage and usage for learning. Research aslo indicated that the majority of
students in Saudi Arabia used smartphones as an ordinary mobile phone, a
computer with internet connection, and digital camera. The results of the study
shown 91.69% of students have used smartphones to log in to their academic
portal, 60.89% of participants have never used smartphones to use Blackboard,
66.01% of students have never used smartphones to take notes in class, and

6


66.89% of participants recorded class lectures without using a smartphone.
However, a better percentage is 54.49% of the participants used smartphones for
downloading class materials. Research findings also suggest that university
students in Saudi Arabia did not fully utilized smartphones for learning
purposes. This findings also a issue that has been dicussed in my research. I
found that students have many activities on their smartphone than for learning.

In another study, the frequency of how smartphones are used for
information, aid to learning processes, socialization, entertainment and
emergencies were conducted by Jollie N. Alson & Liezel V. Misagal (2016).
The study veered into the reality use of smartphones among students of two
colleges of the University of Perpetual Help-Calamba. Research findings
indicated that 85% student are considered addicts to heavy users. Especially,
Socialization is one of the most popular features of smartphones, particularly in
networking sites, text messaging, making phone calls, and chat conversations.
The author also suggests further study should be conducted to analyze the
various factors that can affect the learning process and studies related to
smartphones usage.
At home
In “Mobile devices in the educational environment: impacts and
solutions”, Nguyen Xuan Nghia (2019) focuses on finding out the positive and
negative impacts of mobile devices and learn different types of solutions to the
use of mobile devices in the classroom. This research is based on the
documentary Research method and combined with a small social survey (sample
of 200 undergraduates HCM city Open University, divided equally for 4 years,
done via online questionnaires, in November, 2019 ...). The exploration results
show that schools that consider these to be as devices for learning actually
spread sentiments about the impacts of non-instructive use with cell phones
development among understudies. Also according to the survey in November

7


2019 with students of HCM city Open University only 17% of the students said
that the majority of lecturers banned the use of mobile devices in class, 73%:
only a few teachers banned and 9.6% said that no lecturers did. Besides, the
study also shows some positive effects of mobile devices such as: Helping to

develop education in areas where communication problems, traffic are difficult,
allowing learning at any time, allows for immediate review and feedback etc.
Some of the negative effects that occur when using smartphones in general
include cyberbullying and exposure to unfavorable events, documentation, and
information. In combination, the above information contributes significantly to
this study.
1.1.2. Using smartphones in learning English
Abroad
Süleyman Nihat Şad, Niyazi Özer, Ümit Yakar & Fatih Öztürk (2017)
confirmed that using smartphones in learning English is a foreign language.
This study implemented at İnönü and Fırat Universities, Turkey, to investigate
the views of freshmen on using their smartphones in learning English as a
foreign language. Participants in the research study were 428 freshmen attending
the English preparation programs at İnönü and Fırat Universities, Turkey. The
findings of the survey found that 30.8% (f1⁄4132) of the students stated that they
always do English vocabulary activities on their smartphones, whereas 21%
(f1⁄490) of them stated they never do activities on English learning websites on
their smartphones. In addition, this survey provided that using smartphones for
English speaking and listening activities are most commonly preferred purpose
for participating students. However, the sample of this research comes from two
universities located in the same region, which also limits the external validity of
the research. The research has provided useful recommendations for teachers
and teacher trainers to use smartphone more effectively, for example, Language
teachers can utilize smartphone to design organized classroom based exercises

8


including task-based perusing, computerized story composing dependent on
emoticons as an innovative agreeable free composing movement, rehearsing or

evaluating unknown dialect sentence structure, jargon, articulations, text or
voice informing across understudies. Furthermore, teachers can instruct or
assign students to broad language learning systems such as doing a longer term
web-quest project, watching a well-known Television arrangement or film to
compose a commentator, and distributing a student newspaper on the Internet, or
writing essay on sites.
In another study, Kukulska-Hulme and Traxler (2008) said that mobile
devices will create a breakthrough in education, support universities to improve
the quality of education and expand opportunities for learners. This is also a
good opportunity for device and content providers to join in building training
programs on smart electronic devices, including smartphones. According to
Laru and Järvelä (2012) believe that using web 2.0 technology in combination
with smartphones will create online learning and knowledge sharing
communities. In particular, mobile device systems will create a flexible training
system for universities.
In study “The Use of Smartphones in Learning English Language Skills: A
Study of University Students’ Perspectives” by Mohammad Abd Alhafeez Ali
Ta’amneh (2021). The aim of study to investigate students’ perspectives about
the use of smartphones in learning English language skills. It also discussed the
benefits and difficulties of using smartphones in the process of learning. The
participants consisted of 151 students enrolled in the first semester of the
academic year 2019/2020 in various English courses taught at Taibah University
(Badr Branch). A questionnaire were designed depending on the previous
studies investigated the role of smartphones in the process of teaching and
learning. The results according to the students' responses were positive with

9


moderate use of smartphones in their endeavor to learn English. This finding is

also found in my research.
1.2. REVIEW OF THEORETICAL BACKGROUND
1.2.1. The Concept of Mobile Learning
Mobile learning or “M-learning” is known by various names and has
many different definitions. In general, it refers to the ability to use mobile
devices to support teaching and learning. Michael M.Grant (2019) pointed out
“four definitions of mobile learning categories are described: (1) relationship to
distance education and elearning, (2) exploitation of devices and technologies,
(3) mediation with technology, and (4) nomadic nature of learner and learning”.
Vavoula and Karagiannidis (2005) also define mobile learning as “any sort of
learning that happens when the learner is not at a fixed predetermined location,
or learning that happens when the learner takes advantage of the learning
opportunity offered by mobile technologies”. Another point of view is that use
of these mobile technologies turns out to be well aligned with educational goals
such as extending learning opportunities, improving student achievement,
supporting differentiation of learning needs, goals and learning styles, and
deliver authentic learning materials to students who would otherwise have no
access to them (Kukulska-Hulme, 2009).
According to John Traxler (2005) in his study “Defining Mobile
Learning” shown that mobile learning can perhaps be defined as ‘any
educational provision where the sole or dominant technologies are handheld or
palmtop devices’. This definition could suggest that mobile learning
encompasses mobile phones, smartphones, personal digital assistants (PDAs)
and their peripherals, tablet PCs, and laptop PCs, but not desktops in carts or
other similar resolutions. This study also found that mobile learning is emerging
as one of the solutions to education's challenges. Mobile learning provides more
options for personalization of learning because a various tools and resources are

10

already available. In mobile learning classrooms, students frequently work
interdependently, in groups, or personally to solve problems, work on projects,
meet particular needs, and allow for student voice and selection.
The existing learning theories in relation to mobile learning include
behaviorism, cognitivism, constructivism, situated learning, problem-based
learning, context awareness learning, collaborative learning, lifelong learning,
and informal learning, etc. (Keskin & Metcalf, 2011).
Dan Corlett, Mike Sharples, Susan Bull & Tony Chan (2004) also pointed
out many university students bring one or more mobile computing devices with
them, such as smart phones, personal digital assistants (PDAs), and laptop or
tablet computers. As portable computers and smartphones become more
popular, there is an opportunity to use them to benefit education. Mobile
learning is not new in and of itself, but new devices with greater capabilities
have created a surge in interest, particularly among language educators (Robert
Godwin-Jones,2011).
1.2.2. Smartphones overview
1.2.2.1 The definition of smartphone
According to William L. Hosch (2009), a smartphone defined as a mobile
telephone with display screen (typically a liquid crystal display, or LCD), builtin personal information management programs (such as an electronic calendar
and address book) found in most personal digital assistants (PDAs), as well as
an operating system (OS) that allows other computer software to be installed for
Internet browsing, e-mail, entertainment, and other purposes. A smartphone may
be thought of as a handheld computer integrated within a mobile telephone.
In

another

definition,

“Smartphones

are

becoming

increasingly

indispensable in everyday life and offer a substantial variety of mobile
applications for information, communication, education, and entertainment
purposes. Smartphones typically have touch screens, mobile Internet access via

11


Wi-Fi or cellular networks, capability for installation of smartphone
applications, and other functions such as media players, digital cameras, and
GPS-based navigation.” by Severin Haug (2015).
1.2.2.2. The function of smartphone
Access the internet
All smartphones allow users to be connected to the internet every day. In
particular, today's smartphones mainly use 4G or 4G LTE. This maybe allow
user faster browsing, reduced latency, and crystal-clear voice calls than the 3rd
generation, “4G speeds are meant to exceed that of 3G. Current 3G speeds are
topped out at 14Mbps downlink and 5.8Mbps uplink. To be able to qualify as a
4G technology, speeds of up to 100Mbps must be reached for a moving user and
1Gbps for a stationary user. So far, these speeds are only reachable with wired
LANs” (different between.net). The key to 4G mobile connectivity with a
smartphone is the ability to freely use the Internet at the video level at any time
and from any location. This enables you to communicate freely with people all

over the world at any time (Soo-Gyung Chae,2020).
As a reported by S.O’Dea (2020), smartphones have replaced computers
as the most popular device for accessing the internet in the United Kingdom
(UK) by 2020, accounting for nearly half of all internet users. Smartphones were
selected as the most important device for accessing the internet by a significant
number of people in 2020.
Sharing data and mobile apps
According to Euro monitor 2010, Smartphone contains functions such as
instant messaging, downloading applications, and the use of information
services such as Wi-Fi and global positioning system (GPS) and entertainment.
There are many Smartphone brands in the world with advanced features like
IPhone, Samsung, Huawei etc. Smartphone owners are now faced with the
decision of choosing of the hundreds of thousands of applications to install. CH-

12


play and App store are the two biggest app support stores currently. Where users
can download and buy applications such as social networking apps (Facebook,
Instagram etc.), entertainment apps (Youtube, shopee, etc.) or English learning
applications etc.
Other Utilities
George Chinnery (2006) surveyed the state of mobile language learning in
LLT five years ago. He mentioned that using smartphones to give vocabulary
practice, quizzes, live coaching, and email lesson content, as well as using PDAs
(personal digital assistants) for file sharing, video playback, and text entry with
a stylus.
In another study, Robert Godwin-Jones (2011) also asserted that today's
smartphones mostly all include a responsive touch screen, making Web
navigation considerably easier. A relatively large virtual keyboard or a full

physical mini-keyboard improves text entry, “Screens are considerably larger,
with higher resolution and clarity, and capable through more powerful
processors of playing back high-resolution video smoothly”.
1.2.2.3. Student’s smartphone usage
In general, most smart-phone customers are young and middle age groups
according to Nielsen (2011). Monica Anderson (2014) also reported, “Young
U.S adults, ages 18-29, are more likely (15%) than other age groups to be
smartphone-dependent”.
According to a Ball State University study, the number of smart phones
purchased by students has more than doubled in the last year (Hernandez, 2010).
Research results showed that 27% of students had smartphones in February
2009; and in February 2010, it up to 49% of students. Hossain and Ahmed
(2016) explored current academic use of smartphones by 316 university
students. All of the participants used their smartphones to search for relevant

13


information on the internet, and 62.3% of them used the Internet several times
per day.
Especially social networks is the main activity of students on their
smartphones. When it comes to social networking, smartphone is a new concern
in the academic world. A smart phone is a mobile device that "allows users to
choose the applications they want to install" in addition to serving as a
communication and computing device (Stollak, Matthew J, Vandenberg, Amy,
Burklund, Andie, Weiss, Stephanie, 2011). With smartphones being able to
connect the internet and have applications of social networking, many people are
concerned about how smartphones with social networking sites will affect
students’ grades. The social media definition is “the relationships that exist
between network of people” (Walter & Riviera, 2004).

In addition, according to a Nielsen Media Research study, almost 25
percent of students’ time on the Internet is now spent on social networking
websites in June,2010 (Jacobsen, & Forste, 2011). Many students spend many
hours each day on social media sites such as Facebook, MySpace, Zalo, and
Twitter etc.
The results of survey by Qingya Wang, Wei Chen, and Yu Liang (2011)
also indicated that 45% participants spent 6-8 hours/day checking social media
sites, while 23% spent more than 8 hours; and only 12% spent less than 2 hours
on this activity and there was a negative aspect to college students’ use of social
media. In the same way, Jesse (2015) examined smartphone and app usage
within student’s university. The study's findings revealed that social media
(Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest) applications are the most
commonly used by students.
For learning purpose, students used smartphones mostly for texting about
class assignments, checking reference materials, reading the news, solving
math problems, and finding PowerPoint slides for the course (Ng, Hassan, Nor,

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Malek, 2017). Similarly, Hossain and Ahmed (2016) examined the academic
smartphone use to support learning needs included: reading full‐text articles
(74.9%), watching video tutorials (56.5%), recording class lesson (45.4%),
preparing class notes (36.2%), and library reference (23.2%).
1.2.2.3. Impact of using smartphone on education
The positive impact of using smartphones in education
Smartphones have had an impact on students' lives in a variety of ways,
particularly education. Students are introduced to the world of knowledge
through the use of smartphones, which provide access to a wide range of
information.

Manvin Kaur & Narina A. Samah (2018) stated that smartphone equipped
with internet enabled feature provide students the ability to be connected always
and easier for them to obtain academic related materials online anytime. Aljaber,
Abdullah Awadh M. (2021) pointed out most students used smartphone to check
their emails (73.5%), 59.3% browsing the Internet for learning purposes, 53.1%
communicate with other people, get access to educational materials (37.3%), and
engage in general learning activities (35.5%).
Furthermore, smart-phones are perfect for personalized informal learning
because they are personal devices. The user determines which apps to download
and how to utilize them. Smartphones and their associated applications also
have the potential advantages of enhancing communication between learners and
educators as well as simplifying the research process (Aljaber, Abdullah Awadh
M, 2021). There are numerous apps and websites available to help you learn and
explore the language. As language educators, we should promote and facilitate
learner autonomy, which allows students to blend formal and informal learning.
Rosina Fransisca J. Lekawael (2017) also affirmed that smartphones and the
internet play an essential role in English teaching and learning. The integration
of smartphones into English language study can make it more successful. And

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she also pointed that students would rather use their smartphones for other things
than education. “Therefore, English language learning should be focused on
leading language teaching by using English resources from smartphone and
internet, as media, which closed to students”. Students prefer to use instant
messaging, email, and web surfing in the library rather than using library online
services (Hanson, 2011).
On the other hand, the learning are more effective by using the
smartphones because it improved student’s performance in the academic aspect

(Eteokleous,2015). Vorley (2015) assessed that the effectiveness of using the
smartphones make students more confidents than. Because if students are
embarrassed to ask their teachers in class, they could ask them via texting or by
calling them.
The negative impact of using smartphones in education
Besides the benefits of using smartphones, the usage of smartphone are
also gave negative impact to the education. According to Ezemenaka (2013),
"young users between the ages of 15 and 19 become addicted while using the
smartphone as their primary need in their daily lives." Addiction is defined as a
condition in which a problematic behavior is characterized by repeated failure to
control the behavior and continued behavior despite significant negative
consequences (Goodman,1990).
According to Su-Jeong (2012), smartphone addiction called as "virtual
life addiction". The issue when users like to connecting to the social media such
as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, E-mail and Skype, make users too addicted
and prefer virtual rather than reality life (Tuan Nurasifa Binti Tuan Soh,2017).
One study reported that 48% of undergraduate university students were
smartphone addicted (Aljomaa et al., 2016).

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