Temporal patterns and educational use of smartphones among Algerian secondary learners

Khabbab Meziane Cherif

doi:10.55056/etq.956

Authors

Khabbab Meziane Cherif The National Institute for Research in Education https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1869-447X

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.55056/etq.956

Keywords:

smartphone, learners, duration time, prefer time, educational smartphone use

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between smartphone use and duration, as well as educational applications and other features used by Algerian secondary school students. Through a questionnaire, data were collected from 375 learners (53.3% female and 46.7% male) in the Setif district of Algeria using a quantitative research design and a questionnaire. In SPSS v27, we analysed the data by mean, standard deviation, and Pearson correlation. A correlation was found between the duration of smartphone use, preferred usage times, and educational use among learners. We found students who use their smartphones less than 4 hours per day tend to peak between 4:30 PM and 6:30 PM, while others who use their smartphones more than 4 hours per day tend to peak between 8:30 PM and after 00:00 PM. Students who used their smartphones for educational purposes often did so during specific times, primarily in the evenings and at night, typically in shorter bursts (1 hour or less per day). Longer smartphone use for educational purposes (2 hours or more) is most likely to occur in the afternoon and early evening. However, the study also revealed that students use their smartphones to browse social media and watch fun reels and videos all day, but most of the time, it is from 4:30 PM till 00:00 AM, and their peak time is between 8:30 PM and 10:00 PM. Game playing peaks in the evening, between 8:30 PM and 10:00 PM. One of the most important recommendations we can make is to learn as much as possible about how learners use their smartphones and how they think about them.

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