The EUROCALL Review, Volume 25, No.

2, September 2017

Research paper

A look at advanced learners’ use of mobile devices for

English language study: Insights from interview data
Mariusz Kruk
University of Zielona Gora, Poland
______________________________________________________________
mkruk @ uz.zgora.pl

Abstract
The paper discusses the results of a study which explored advanced learners of English
engagement with their mobile devices to develop learning experiences that meet their
needs and goals as foreign language learners. The data were collected from 20 students
by means of a semi-structured interview. The gathered data were subjected to
qualitative and quantitative analysis. The results of the study demonstrated that, on the
one hand, some subjects manifested heightened awareness relating to the
advantageous role of mobile devices in their learning endeavors, their ability to reach
for suitable tools and retrieve necessary information so as to achieve their goals, meet
their needs and adjust their learning of English to their personal learning styles, and on
the other, a rather intuitive and/or ad hoc use of their mobile devices in the classroom.
Keywords: Learner autonomy, mobile devices, advanced EFL learners, learning
English.

1. Introduction
Mobile devices, smartphones and tablet computers in particular, have generated a lot of
interest among researchers in recent years (Byrne & Diem, 2014). This is because the
opportunities these new technologies may offer (e.g. individualized learning, the variety
of mobile apps available, easy access to the internet) and/or the fact that they are
increasingly more common among learners make them an important and potentially
useful addition to formal and informal language learning.
According to Benson (2011), there has always been a connection between educational
technologies and learner autonomy to the extent that they have often been intended for
independent practice. It should be noted, however, that this link and “future enquiry
and practice into technology-mediated learner autonomy will need to be increasingly
aligned to the tools, settings, and activities that are of significance to language learners”
(Reinders & White, 2016, p. 151). Reinders and White (2016) further argue that as long
as “the potential range of settings, tools, and experiences is now virtually limitless,
individuals need to be increasingly adept at critical adaptive learning in order to benefit
from and contribute effectively to those settings” (p. 151). Beyond doubt, contemporary
language teachers should equip foreign/second language learners with appropriate
knowledge concerning the affordances of mobile devices for language study and they
should prepare them for effective usage of such devices for this purpose. It is also of
paramount importance, for both researchers and practitioners, to comprehend the link
between the modalities of the language learners' organization of their own learning
experiences and environments and the role mobile technologies, in particular
smartphones and tablets, play in these contexts.
Taking into consideration the above-mentioned issues, the study reported in this article
investigated ways advanced English language students use their mobile devices (i.e.
smartphones and tablet computers) for their language learning. The article commences
with a short overview of relevant literature. Next, the design of the study is described,

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2.2. Autonomy and new technologies

As stated in the previous section, the concept of autonomy has been one of the most
researched areas in the field of second/foreign language learning and teaching over the
last few decades. It should be noted, however, that the field of learner autonomy
started to be influenced by technology in the mid-1990s as a result of the growing
influence of the internet on almost every sphere of our life (including second/foreign
language education) and the opportunities for online collaboration and communication
(Reinders & White, 2016). As stated by Benson and Chik (2010), the latest generations
of new technologies, particularly those encompassing the internet, user-generated Web
content and mobility, seem to be having a bearing on the way autonomous language
learning develops. Perhaps, one of the most important benefits of implementing new
technologies into language learning is the fact that they provide occasions for language
learners who do not have direct access to the target language. This is because the use
of new technologies, including mobile technology, allow them to “bypass classrooms and
go directly to target language texts and users through the internet and social media”
(Benson, 2011, p. 17).
When it comes to the use of mobile technology, and, in particular, smartphones and
tablet computers, for learning a foreign or second language, they can assist language
learners with their learning endeavors by granting access to numerous language
resources whenever and wherever such learners need them and/or they happen to be
(Jones, 2015). In Jones’s opinion, such language involvement might comprise, for
instance, the use of chunks of spare time for language practice, searching for target
language vocabulary in relevant contexts or interactions on social media (Jones, 2015).
Furthermore, by having a mobile device a language learner has the opportunity to take
control of his or her learning, direct it and engage in language activities that meet his or
her individual needs and goals (Kukulska-Hulme, Traxler & Pettit, 2007; Pettit &
Kukulska-Hulme 2007).
Given the importance attached to new technologies, and, in particular the potential role
of mobile devices in autonomous language learning, the terms mobile
learning and mobile devices (MobDs) need first to be explained. As for mobile learning,
no single agreed-upon definition of the term exists in the literature (Oz, 2015). This is
because some researchers define mobile learning as an extension of e-learning built
upon mobile devices whereas some other researchers understand it as learning that
happens anywhere and anytime (cf. Oz, 2015). As far as mobile devices are concerned,
they can be defined as “any device that is small, autonomous and unobtrusive enough
to accompany us in every moment and can be used for educational purposes”
(Trifanova Knapp, Ronchetti & Gamper, 2004, p. 3) or as “hand held electronic devices
that can be comfortably carried around in a pocket or bag, including MP3 players, digital
recorders, e-readers, tablets, and smartphones” (Kukulska-Hulme, Norris & Donohue,
2015, p. 39).
A lot of studies concerning the use of mobile technology and mobile devices in language
learning have been published. The findings of these studies concentrated on, for
example, language learners’ views on the use of mobile devices in language instruction
(e.g. Oz, 2015), students’ attitudes towards using mobile phones as instructional tools
for foreign language learning (e.g. Cakir, 2015), profiling mobile language learners (e.g.
Byrne & Diem, 2014), their effect on learning a foreign/second language (e.g. Nah,
White & Sussex, 2008; Cavus & Ibrahim, 2009; Zhang, Song & Burston, 2011),
distance language learning (e.g. Demouy, Jones, Kan, Kukulska-Hulme & Eardley,
2016), informal language learning practices (Reinders & Cho, 2011; Jones, 2015),
learners’ use of mobile devices for learning a foreign language (Stockwell, 2007;
Dashtestani, 2015) and autonomy in language learning (e.g. Díaz-Vera, 2012; Djoub,
2015). In addition to this, researchers investigated a number of applications of mobile
devices and presented both benefits and drawbacks of the usage of mobile technologies
(e.g. Miangah & Nezarat, 2012), discussed the use of mobile devices in supporting
social contacts and collaborative learning (e.g. Kukulska-Hulme & Shield, 2008) and
offered guidelines related to the implementation of mobile learning into second/foreign
language instruction (e.g. Kukulska-Hulme et al., 2015).

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 Do you organize regular formal or informal mobile English language learning

sessions?
 What do you learn most frequently by means of your mobile device(s)? Why
this?
 Do you feel that thanks to the use of your mobile device(s) you devote more
time for learning the English language?
 As far as learning English through your mobile device(s) is concerned, do you
consider yourself as an experienced user of such device(s)?
The gathered data were subjected to qualitative and quantitative analysis. The analysis
started with partial transcription of the important parts of the data (Dörnyei, 2007) on a
computer word processor program Microsoft Word 2016. Then the transcribed parts of
the data were read several times in order to look for common themes and frequently
occurring information. The recurring ideas were coded and recoded, revised and
updated. The researcher used the highlighting function of the word processor program
which allows the user to highlight the text on the transcript with different colors and
comments to record any observations and thematic categories recognized in the data.
The emerged categories were reviewed, compared, modified and either merged or
abandoned. It should also be noted that the obtained data were analyzed quantitatively.
This type of analysis involved counting the number of the interviewees’ responses and
calculating percentages.
4. Findings
A thorough analysis of the data yielded the following thematic categories: usage of
mobile devices, reasons for using mobile devices, resources and tools, mobile
encounters, language practiced and study performance.
4.1. Usage of mobile devices
Table 1 shows the study participants’ mobile devices (MobDs) usage descriptions. The
table demonstrates that smartphones were the most often used mobile devices by the
students. In addition, the numerical information in the table indicates that the
participants, on average, had been using them for English language study for about
3.80 years (minimum 2, maximum 6 years). 9 (45%) and 11 (55%) of the subjects
started using their mobile devices at senior high school and university, respectively. It
should also be added that, with the exception of one student (i.e. S9), all the other
participants claimed to use their mobile devices in order to learn English much more
frequently with time. Finally, more than half of the students (55%) regarded themselves
as experienced or fairly experienced users of their MobDs for English language learning;
however, 45% claimed not to be very skilful in this area.
Table 1. The students’ mobile devices usage descriptions.

Year/ Use of MobDs

Self-assessed
Level of Student Sex Device used for language
experience
study study (approx.)

S1 female smartphone and tablet 2 years not very experienced

S2 female smartphone 5 years experienced

S3 female smartphone 5 years fairly experienced

2nd year
S4 female smartphone, rarely tablet 4 years fairly experienced
B.A.

S5 female smartphone 3 years not very experienced

S6 male smartphone 2 years experienced

S7 female smartphone and tablet 5 years fairly experienced

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 The EUROCALL Review, Volume 25, No. 2, September 2017

English, PONS, Google Translate) and having access to language materials

(e.g. Academica). Finally, some students used their MobDs in order to read language
materials downloaded from the internet (e.g. PDF files). The following responses
illustrate some of these issues:
S5: I use apps for “index cards”, dictionaries and a variety of apps for
developing English vocabulary.
S10: I have some online friends and I talk with them in English (Do you do this
by means of instant messaging applications?) Yes, I use WhatsApp Messenger.
S15: I often read scanned book pages and pdf materials (…) I access English
vocabulary by means of online dictionaries.
S20: Fiszkoteka. I frequently use this app (...) I also listen to podcasts and I
have the app called Six minutes English in order to practice listening (...) Also
because vocabulary is used in a variety of contexts.
4.4. Mobile encounters
Thirteen (65%) interviewees claimed to use their MobDs most frequently in their leisure
time, six (30%) in the classroom and one student said he had used his smartphone
equally frequently in the classroom and out-of-class English study. As for the students
who used their smartphones or tablet computers in their leisure time, some of them did
it with the aim of reading English texts, listening to audio resources, checking and
learning new vocabulary, preparing multimedia presentations and playing language
games. This is not to say, of course, that this group of learners did not use their MobDs
at all during classes; however, the use of MobDs in this respect was only limited to
checking target language vocabulary (e.g. S1: I use my smartphone, for example, to
check something I don’t understand (...) I installed a dictionary and I use it to find
words). When it comes to the subjects who claimed to use their MobDs most frequently
in the classroom, they used them to check unfamiliar vocabulary and/or find words they
needed during various language activities. It is also important to note that these
students were not very willing to use their MobDs at home in view of the fact that they
favored their home computers. For example:
S7: I use them outside of University in order to learn and practice English
vocabulary and to prepare multimedia presentations.
S13: In my free time I learn English words and phrases, listen to English
recordings and I read various texts in English.
S19: Yes, I use my smartphone and tablet for out-of-class learning but I also
use them during classes mostly to check words and collocations.
S16: I think I do this during practical English language classes more regularly in
the classroom than outside of it (...) In the classroom I check English words in
digital dictionaries (...) I do this to check words, spelling, or to recall some words
(...) or I use my smartphone to look for synonyms (...).
The analysis of the gathered data also demonstrated that the majority of the
interviewees (13 or 65%) were in favor of using their smartphones and/or tablet
computers for informal English learning (i.e. learning the target language for pleasure)
and 7 (35%) students associated the use of their MobDs with formal learning (i.e.
related to their studies). It should be noted, however, that only two interviewees
claimed to hold and somewhat organize regular mobile English language sessions:
S10: I think this is what I have talked about earlier, I mean these chats with my
friends. Perhaps we don’t chat very regularly ... we chat three times a week and
that’s it but, at the same time, it’s not sporadic because we arrange it and it
takes place pretty regularly.
S16: I often watch videos on YouTube and I do this the most often through my
smartphone.
Finally, it has to be noted that the use of mobile devices was not explicitly advised or
suggested by the interviewees’ teachers during their practical English language classes
or any other classes at the university. This is not to say, of course, that they never

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information and more on language production, on the use of English ... there is
less time used but it’s more effective. (S14)
It is also interesting to note that the use of mobile devices might be valuable for
kinesthetic or tactical language learners:
I think I spend more time … for me it’s much nicer and more interesting than
sitting and reading books … it’s better for me since I’m kinesthetic so it’s hard
for me to sit and read a traditional book ... it’s because I don’t remember then
much but when I use my smartphone which is mobile I can ... I can do it while
doing other activities and this makes things easier for me. (S5)
Finally, it should be noted that 5 (25%) interviewees were not able to say whether or
not the use of mobile devices made them study the target language more effectively or
efficiently and they expressed their opinion by simply claiming that “It’s difficult to say”.
5. Discussion and conclusions
The picture that emerges from the analysis of the collected data regarding the advanced
learners' use of mobile devices for learning English is relatively encouraging. This is
because all the study participants used, at least to some extent, their mobile devices
(i.e. smartphones and/or tablet computers) in order to learn the English language
autonomously. Moreover, the positive impact of using mobile devices for English study
was acknowledged by the majority of the interviewees. Their beneficial contribution to
their English development was chiefly linked with easy access to English language
resources, the opportunity to store them, comfort in using their smartphones and
tablets anywhere and anytime as well as perceived gains in English learning. The results
of the study also showed that all interviewees engaged with their smartphones and/or
tablet computers to practice the target language vocabulary (plus some students also
claimed to learn pronunciation of English words) and the majority of the subjects used
their mobile devices autonomously in their leisure time as well as during language
classes. Such a state of affairs can be explained in terms of increased awareness on the
part of some students of the beneficial role of MobDs in foreign language learning, their
ability to reach for appropriate tools and retrieve needed information to achieve their
goals and adjust their learning of the target language to their personal learning styles.
Despite this positive view of MobDs reported by the study participants, the results of the
study also revealed that only a few subjects engaged with their mobile devices to
master target language skills such as reading, listening, writing and speaking as well as
English language grammar. In addition, some interviewees limited themselves to a
rather intuitive and perhaps even spontaneous use of their mobile devices in the
language classroom. It should also be noted that almost half of the subjects regarded
themselves as quite inexperienced in using their mobile devices when it comes to
learning the English language despite the fact that some of the students had been using
them with the intention of learning English for years. Taking all these findings into
account, one may conclude that this is due to a failure or underestimation of the role
and place of mobile devices in foreign language learning and teaching on the part of
language teachers. It seems therefore warranted to say that the subjects’ use of mobile
devices could be altered if teachers took into account the benefits they may offer. For
this reason language teachers should, for instance, present the affordances of mobile
technology and discuss them with students during language classes. They should also
select mobile apps and create opportunities for using them in- and out-of-class learning
by offering or designing tasks devoted to practicing a variety of language skills and
subsystems suitable for the use of such devices. If this were to happen, teachers need
to respond quickly to the constant and dynamic changes in contemporary
foreign/second language learning and teaching contexts by undergoing official teacher
training not only in the area of technology-mediated language learning and teaching but
also in the context of learner autonomy.
As with all studies, the study reported in this paper has some limitations. Although the
interviewees represented a range of experience of English language learning, the small
number of participants reduces the generalizability of the results. Another limitation is
related to the fact that the group was largely homogenous, i.e. the subjects came from
the same institution and all studied English. Yet another weakness may concern the

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[1] It should be noted that the reason for choosing this sample was for convenience
since they were accessible to the researcher (Dörnyei, 2007, p. 98-99).
[2] It should be noted that in order to ward off potential misunderstandings and to allow
the participants to freely elaborate upon their answers, the interviews were conducted
in Polish.
[3] Both here and throughout the remainder of the paper, the excerpts are translations
of the students’ responses by the present author.

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