Title: Understanding users' perceived needs and concerns toward mobile application integration in primary science education in Korea

Authors: Hyo-Jeong So; Hyungshin Choi; Hye-Gyoung Yoon

Addresses: Department of Creative IT Engineering, Pohang University of Science & Technology (POSTECH), Pohang, South Korea ' Department of Computer Education, Chuncheon National University of Education, Chuncheon, South Korea ' Department of Science Education, Chuncheon National University of Education, Chuncheon, South Korea

Abstract: This research aims to examine how students, teachers and parents in Korea perceive the needs and concerns about integrating mobile applications to support science learning in schools. The sample includes 632 students, 68 teachers and 141 parents from 11 primary schools. Results reveal some important implications regarding users' acceptance of mobile applications for teaching and learning. First, the majority of students did not frequently access and use mobile devices, which might be associated with the school policy to ban or limit the use of mobile devices in the classroom. Second, the teacher group was the most conservative in their perceptions toward integrating mobile applications in science education. Lastly, there was a clear pattern observed in users' perceptions about science topics that are relevant or irrelevant in integrating mobile applications. This study provides important insights about how the three distinctive groups perceive the role of mobile applications in science education.

Keywords: mobile learning; m-learning; science education; digital textbooks; technology adoption; mobile applications; traditional textbooks; stakeholders; SMART education; perceived needs; user concerns; primary education; South Korea; primary schools.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMLO.2015.074515

International Journal of Mobile Learning and Organisation, 2015 Vol.9 No.4, pp.315 - 333

Received: 18 Feb 2015
Accepted: 20 Aug 2015

Published online: 03 Feb 2016 *

Full-text access for editors Full-text access for subscribers Purchase this article Comment on this article