Engagement in digital lecture halls: A study of student course engagement and mobile device use during lecture

Abstract

Universities have experienced increases in technology ownership and usage amongst students entering undergraduate programs. Almost all students report owning a mobile phone and many students view laptops and tablets as educational tools, though they also report using them for nonacademic activities during lectures. We explored the relationship between student course engagement and the use of smartphones, laptops, cell phones, and tablets during lecture. Undergraduate students responded to an online survey asking about both course engagement and mobile device habits. Results show that smartphone use was most strongly related to lowered course engagement and while laptop use was related to lowered engagement, it was to a lesser extent. In contrast, overall engagement of students using tablets or cell phones was not significantly different than those who did not.