The Role of Smartphones in Biology Lessons: Insights from Slovenian Schools

Due to the many possibilities offered by smartphones, the question arises as to how they can be used as a didactic tool in the classroom if they clearly support learning. Such use can provide new opportunities for students to demonstrate their understanding of subject matter by using smart cell phones that enable m-learning (learning anywhere, anytime). As with the use of any information and communication technology (ICT), the use of m-ICT is an important prerequisite for use by teachers. There is no national regulation for the use of cell phones in schools that would dictate to schools or students how to use these devices. Therefore, schools must rely on themselves and their own internal rules when deciding on the use of cell phones. We would like to determine the frequency of ICT use in class, the propensity of students to use smartphones in class, the actual use of smartphones and the use of mobile applications in class. We obtained data showing that 83% of respondents use smartphones for teaching purposes. Respondents who have already used phones are very interested in using this type of technology in the classroom, but we could not find any significant statistical differences between the two genders. The remaining 17% stated that they have never used smartphones in their teaching but believe that they could be useful and should be used in practice. We concluded that students are inclined to use smartphones for educational purposes and that the majority are active on the World Wide Web. Even though smart phones are not yet widely used in schools today or are not used daily, we can conclude that this type of use is perceived as beneficial and will increase over time.