The New Mobile Phone: A Computer in Your Pocket

A survey of U.S. Teenagers conducted in 2010, indicated that 75% of those in the 12-17 age range have a cell phone (Lenhart, Ling, Campbell & Purcell, 2010). Even 58% of 12-year-olds have a phone. Most of these phones have added features that allow the phone to function as a multimedia capture device (audio, images, video) and many allow the phone to function as an Internet-enabled computer. Seventy-five percent of those who own cell phones (i.e., approximately 50% of the total sample) have unlimited text messaging plans. Texting is a very popular form of communication. Among those who send text messages, the average number of messages per month is 1500. Data on other functions are provided below.

So, why should such data be of interest to educators? First, we would suggest these data broaden the perspective of how at least some teenagers use technology outside of the classroom. For many, the cell phone provides most of the same functionality we would expect from an Internet-enabled computer. An interesting finding from the PEW study concerned differences in the use of the cell phone as a device for browsing the Internet as a function of family income. Because browsing the Internet requires more than the most basic phone and more than the most basic access plan, one might assume children from wealthier families would be most likely to use this feature simply because it would seem logical the more expensive options would be available. This was not the case, wealthier teens were significantly more likely than teens from lower income families to access the Internet from a home computer, but teens from the lowest income families (<$30,000) were most likely to use a cell phone to access the Internet. Twenty-three percent of survey respondents from families with an income in excess of $75,000 claimed to use their phones to go online while 41% of those in lowest income group made the same claim. So, cell phones are available to many, but not all students, and students who do have phones use the devices to meet a variety of personal communication and information needs.

Educators might also consider that students might purposefully take advantage of the availability of cell phones for educational ends. One of the podcasters we follow was recently interviewing a digital photography expert and asked a question intended to solicit a recommendation for an inexpensive digital camera.

“What is your favorite camera?”, the podcast host asked.

“The one I have with me”, the expert responded.

The response generated a chuckle, but his point was that the most important change you might make to take better and more interesting pictures is to make a small digital camera your constant companion. So, if you constantly carry a smartphone, the phone might be the best way to send emails, take and share pictures or video, check for updates from your Twitter feed, take some notes, search for information on the Internet, or engage in any of the other search, communication, or data storage functions many phones make available simply because the phone is the device you have available when you might want to do any of these things.

A device that is always available can change behavior and those of us who now carry such devices are constantly discovering opportunities to put these devices to productive use. Once we become aware of such possibilities, behaviors that at first seem unusual or creative become commonplace. We each probably have a personal example that fits this set of characteristics. How about taking a picture of the end of the row in a large mall or stadium parking lot to make it easier to find our car? How about taking a picture of a book we discover in a book store but want to purchase online when we return home because we know it will be less expensive? How about searching for the ingredients for a dish you decide you would like to prepare while in the supermarket?

Recognizing such potential, the primary issue then becomes how can such a versatile tool be helpful to learners. Perhaps important questions relevant to this issue become, will schools allow students to use phones and how will phone use be managed. Despite our personal experience with various forms of technology, we all probably hold on to some perspectives based in our own histories and biases. We each see some new opportunities but are blind to others. One of the services we hope we can provide is to offer perspectives you may not have considered. One goal of our online tools is to allow you to contribute your insights in return. Our initial “classroom” example was selected to make a point. Technology advocates have frequently been plagued with some version of the flawed assumption that technology is proposed as an alternative to “real” experiences. We have always argued that technology may represent a way to increase the educational benefits of experiences by allowing students to preserve representations of experiences for careful and prolonged reflection. The capability of a phone to capture video, audio, and images represents a current example of this suggestion. Next time you are in biology lab completing a required dissection use your phone to take some pictures of your specimen. You will probably surprise your classmates who have not thought of doing this and you might find these images more helpful as a study aid than any sketches you could generate. We are not suggesting that the capabilities of smart phones are ideal for many of the activities we will eventually describe, but the devices are often available to many students and thus potentially expand the equipment and the time frame available for student productivity.

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