1 Introduction

The use of emergent mobile technologies (such as laptops, tablet PCs, and smart-phones) has facilitated notetaking and lecture recording for later review. At present, new developments in tablet PCs and smart-phone software have made screens a part of our daily lives. The purpose of this study was to investigate student perceptions and experiences regarding the emergent technology used to achieve learning within a high school setting. Noroozi et al. (2012) stated that learners with better skills in the use of such technology as smart-phones, YouTube, and social media have produced more alternative perspectives, deeper learning styles, and engagement in more critical thinking than those who have poor technology skills. As noted by Khoo (2019), the affordances of emergent technology inspire learners to contribute as a part of context-aware abundant learning.

Though technology has become an integral part of our everyday lives, research is needed to identify the full potential of the benefits of using technology in the classroom (Lipponen and Kumpulainen 2011). There is a strong need for a link between emergent technology combination and the Teaching and Learning/Pedagogical Frameworks to guide educational research, practice, and policy (Khoo 2019). Researches on emergent technology mostly focus on the potential impact of integrating technology into the learning process from the teacher’ perspective and ignore the learner’s perception as a centre-learning in the learning process. Insights into students’ experiences and perceptions of the value of embracing emergent technology for students learning, based on their high school actual experience, may provide us with a better understanding of the right decision to increase or rationalize the amount of technology in the learning process. However, insight into how undergraduate students evaluate the usage of emergent technology based on their high school experiences is currently needed.

However, despite the continual influx of technology among teenagers these days, very few studies have explored how emergent technology—particularly laptops, tablets, and smart-phones—is either used to enhance learner achievement or serves as a distraction. It is believed that this study will contribute to make it abundantly clear the current usage of technology in high schools by classroom teachers and to uncover insufficient dimensions of integrating the emergent technology in the learning process. In addition, the result of the study may support classroom teachers to gain a deeper understanding and skill set to meet the needs of future learners.The overarching research questions for this study are as follows:

  • Q1. Is the use of emergent technology perceived by students as an effective tool for meeting their needs to enhance learning?

  • Q2. How is emergent technology used as a distraction that affects the students’ level of attention in the classroom?

  • Q3. How is instructors’ lack of knowledge contributing to minimizing the utilization of available technology?

2 Review of the literature

2.1 Use of technology among teenagers

Domalewska (2014) stated that 65% of teenagers in the United States own cell phones, and cell phone ownership is expected to become more ubiquitous in that country. Since this population of students uses technology to communicate outside of the school setting, incorporating technology into the classroom setting could increase the effectiveness of collaborative learning. Phone usage in school has been considered a serious source of distraction in the classroom, and there are concerns about the use of phones for cheating as well as attitudes about policies restricting it from ringing and being used during class to send/receive messages unrelated to class content (Kuznekoff et al. 2015). According to Lee et al. (2019), the number of households with PCs at home and their utilization of the Internet and newer technology has significantly risen over the past 16 years. Learning is a social activity and is best achieved when presented in a relevant and meaningful context (Lipponen and Kumpulainen 2011). In addition, the adaptability of technology permits adapting and modifying instructional tasks based on the individualized learning needs of students within the classroom setting (Domalewska 2014). Since technology could assist with differentiating instruction and enhancing collaborative learning, increasing the role of technology for learning purposes represents a new and innovative strategy for maximizing both student engagement and student achievement in the classroom.

2.2 Using Technology in the Classroom

Technology has become common throughout schools and classrooms in the United States. According to the National Center for Education Statistics (2009), 97% of teachers have had one or more computers with Internet access located in the classroom every day. The amount of computers per classroom has also continued to rise. The ratio of students to computers in these classrooms is nearly five to one. In a survey of teachers, it was reported that computers were used in the classroom during instructional time often or sometimes (Gray et al. 2010). Gray, Thomas, & Westat’s study shows how prevalent computers are in the classroom, and even more technology, such as tablets and smart boards, may also play a role in these classrooms.

With the rapid increase in the number of native technology users, a need exists to investigate how to integrate technological tools in the formal processes of teaching and learning, specifically in K-12 education. In general, technology has been a convenient tool for engaging young adults with their peers and situating their conversations in authentic environments. Technology could be used to stimulate students to brainstorm and connect educational concepts and current global issues with their classroom learning (Brooks 2009). The integration of new technology such as laptops, tablets and smart-phones in the classroom learning process has increased students’ self-efficacy in problem solving (Pynoo et al. 2011). Moreover, it is a good opportunity for students and teachers to be connected and exchange information on a continual basis. Students could be very motivated to learn through E-learning (Gilakjani et al. 2013). For example, through technology revolutions, teachers and students could expand learning networks beyond the classroom or campus by communicating with other faculty members or peers. Technology has also been easily accessible through mobile devices, such as phones or tablets, that provide timely learning opportunities (Brooks 2009). Technology has provided a medium for students to learn and apply digital literacy in academic environments (Brooks 2009). Technology could also influence learning through computers and video (Gilakjani et al. 2013). This research sought to understand how students informally used technology for learning and what such uses have implied for instructors and formal educational settings. Saini and Abraham (2019) concluded that integrating Facebook in the learning process leads to better learning achievements and engaging students in the learning process more compared to the conventional approach.

High school instructors’ use of technology in the classroom was examined in a qualitative study conducted by Hung and Chou (2015). Instructors utilized low-end technology in the classroom (e.g., overhead projectors, VCRs, and slide projectors) despite the availability of newer, more advanced technology. Instructors expressed a desire to use more advanced technology but did not have the knowledge or the support. The instructors stated that technology used in the classroom could facilitate the presentation of information, increase student engagement, and provide increased support for students. Instructors found that technology has increased their communication with students, which was helpful in large introductory level courses. A study by Hung and Chou (2015) provided high school instructors’ views of technology in the classroom; this view may differ from high school students’ perspectives (Reid 2014).

2.3 The missing piece: Maximizing the effectiveness of technology use in the classroom

Just because technology is available does not always mean that technology will be used; many teachers have not been comfortable with using technology for integration and active learning (Liu et al. 2014). Liu et al. (2014) attempted to determine teacher perceptions of instructional technology integration in the classroom and what factors contributed to teachers actually using the technology with their students. Liu et al. (2014) found that teachers regularly using technology in their own lives were more likely to integrate technology into their classrooms. The study also found that significant differences existed for technology use and integration based on grade level, showing that some teachers may have found technology to be less effective with younger children.

Modern technological innovations have drastically changed the way individuals live and communicate within an increasingly global society. However, the use of technological advancements within educational settings has not kept pace because students have been less prepared. Teaching practices and student learning have been minimally influenced by modern technological innovations (Keiler 2011). A review by Nelson et al. (2019) of the existing research found that a preservice teacher’s self-efficacy—or self-rated ability—in using emergent technology in the learning process is linked with technology integration attitudes and intentions. From Keiler’s (2011) research, this was neutral. When technology was implemented within the school setting, technological interventions were often used in a narrow fashion and in a manner that did not fully take advantage of potential benefits related to student engagement and achievement (Keiler 2011). Given the practical uses of technology in everyday life, incorporating technology into the school setting could increase curricular relevance and prepare students for success in their local communities as young adults (Gilakjani et al. 2013).

3 Methods

This study used a generic qualitative approach to investigate student perceptions of emergent technology used in the classroom setting. A constructivist theory guided our research study. Kahlke (2014) emphasized that, rather than being separate from an individual, knowledge was a representation of reality in the mind of the individual experiencing it. This was the rationale behind our decision to conduct semi-structured, qualitative interviews, see Fig. 1. Rather than investigating an objective and quantifiable understanding of the use and benefits of emergent technology in the classroom, the reality of emergent technology based on the unique perceptions of each participant in our study was used to derive meaning related to this topic.

Fig. 1
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Research Process

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3.1 Personal stance of researchers

As teachers and doctoral students in the field of education, all of us have seen first-hand the benefits of using emergent technology in the classroom setting. We have also witnessed the growth of newer technology over the course of our educational careers. Technology has become a much more integral component of our classroom instruction as doctoral students compared to our time as high school and undergraduate students. Based on our experiences as students, teachers and researchers, we are advocating for the increased use of emergent technology in the classroom and believe that increased emergent technology will lead to increased student achievement and engagement among learners of all ages and grade levels.

3.2 Participants

Eight undergraduate students at the same midsized institution participated in this study. In order to gain an in-depth understanding of the use of emergent technology in the high school setting, a homogenous sampling procedure was used to gather participants. Yilmaz and Altinkurt (2011) identified homogeneous sampling as a type of purposeful sampling. The goal of this sampling procedure was to thoroughly understand an issue or perspective from a very specific population of individuals. By limiting our participants to undergraduate students between the ages of 18 and 21, we were able to analyse the use of emergent technology in the school setting based on interviews with individuals who had graduated high school between 2 and 4 years prior to their participation in this study, see Table 1. This allowed us to gather data from high school graduates who had recent experience using emergent technology in the classroom and were capable of providing current information regarding our topic.

Table 1 Personal information of the participants
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3.3 Interviews

A generic qualitative approach with semi-structured interview form (where participants were asked the same set of questions), was conducted with each participant in this study. Rabionet (2011) stated that questions during semi-structured interviews facilitated targeted conversations related to the particular topic between researchers and participants. However, the interviews also have ample flexibility, allowing participants to comfortably share their thoughts, feelings, perceptions, and experiences related to the research topic. Semi-structured interviews maintain relevancy to the research topic while, at the same time, allowing the true voice of the participant to be included during the interview process. Data collection procedures included one-on-one interviews with each participant. Interviews related to this study took place either in-person or over the phone. During interviews, participants were asked to reflect on their involvement with newer technology in the high school classrooms. Specifically, participants were asked approximately five to seven open-ended questions focused on how they used technology in the classroom, as well as their opinion on the importance of technology used in the classroom and the benefits and limitations of using technology in the classroom. In order to accurately represent the perspectives and experiences of each participant, all interviews were recorded using an audio recording device and were transcribed verbatim.

3.4 Data processing and analysis

A thematic analysis program, NVIVO (QSR International Pty Ltd 2018) was used to code data related to this study. The specific coding procedure used within this research study was a line-by-line, open-coding procedure. This type of coding involves researchers analysing each line of interview transcripts for concepts, terms, and ideas prevalent throughout each interview transcript (Willson and Given 2014). These concepts, terms, and ideas were examined throughout each interview transcript and were represented as underlying themes that are expanded upon later in this research study.

The use of open-coding procedures during semi-structured interviews was supported by a study conducted by Tokmak and Ozgelen (2013). They used similar data analysis methods to investigate teacher perceptions of educational computer games. When using line-by-line, open-coding procedures during qualitative interview studies, researchers could effectively and efficiently identify and elaborate upon common issues and trends prevalent among participant responses. This permits the emergence of themes through data analysis that could both guide the current research as well as pave the way for future research endeavours (Tokmak and Ozgelen 2013). All the researchers were involved in the data collection process. In this study, the data were analysed using content analysis. A thematic analysis program, NVIVO, was used to code data, determined themes, categorizing of the data based on the themes and interpreting the data.

3.5 Trustworthiness

Member checking technique was used to ensure that the themes and overall findings of this research were consistent with the ideas, perceptions, and experiences of participants included in this study. Member checking is an effective strategy for ensuring that the results obtained through qualitative research are consistent with the perceptions, ideas, and experiences of research participants (Silberman et al. 2013). This consistency is a crucial prerequisite for obtaining credible and accurate results through educational research. After completing the interview transcript procedures described above, all transcripts were returned by email to the participants to check for the accuracy and give the opportunity to confirm or disconfirm the transcripts through deleting and adding data. In our study, all of the participants 100% (n = 8) returned the transcript, see Table 2. Overall, most participants returned the documents with no change, with only three of participants returned the document with additional comment.

Table 2 Characteristics of participants who returned member check document and who provided additional comment
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4 Results

Following the thematic analysis detailed above, systematic analysis of the data led to four emerging themes: Technology Enhances Learning, Technology as a Distraction, Increase in the Use of Technology, and Instructor Lack of Knowledge. These findings related to the primary research question: is the use of technology perceived as an effective tool for meeting students’ needs and enhancing their learning? Additionally, they explored students’ perception of technology in the classroom.

4.1 Technology enhances learning

A central theme that emerged was the use of technology to enhance learning. This related directly to the primary research question and the main purpose of this study. Table 3 presents subtheme and value related to the use of emergent technology to enhance learning. As shown in Table 3, several of the participants explained that using multiple methods of learning (e.g., visual, auditory and kinesthetic) enhanced their ability to recall information. Pairing a lecture with a PowerPoint provided visual and auditory instruction. In describing how technology enhanced learning, one participant reported,

I think I learned a lot more in the classroom because I like technology so I was interested in it and our teachers really tried to mix it up with different programs, like jeopardy games for review or we did some software that was really interactive. We would go up to a smart board and touch it and move it to a different idea or something. I felt like it was really engaging, and I felt like a lot of the students at the school also felt the same, so I learned a lot from it.

Table 3 Views of the participants about emergent technology as an effective tool to enhance learning
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Several participants expressed that receiving multiple methods of instructions enhanced recall and academic performance. Several participants expressed that they spaced out during lectures or got distracted. Active engagement through working with technology combined with visual and auditory lectures were reported to increase the participants’ engagement with the material and recall. Participants not only expressed that technology enhanced their own learning but also that of diverse learners (e.g., children with Learning disabilities, Attention Deficit Hyperactive Disorder: ADHD). Several of the participants were Elementary Education majors who noted that they would use technology to differentiate instruction to meet all students’ needs. One participant explained,

. . . As a teacher, you can have every student working with a group. And they are just working on different problems. So, I feel like it would be good for differentiating instruction. Instead of, when you hav one projector, everybody is doing the same thing.

Another participant explained that using technology allowed children with ADHD to move around and not be static,

. . . Even moving the mouse on your laptop or something is at least a little bit of movement. I think if you have kids sitting quietly or taking notes, they are going to get bored. Where if you have them on an app or something, it’s something a little different.

Participants expressed that technology enhanced their own learning in high school and college and that it also enhances the experience of diverse learners.

4.2 Technology as a distraction

In discussing the ways in which technology enhances learning, the concept surfaced that technology could also be a distraction (this theme was categorized as Technology as a Distraction). This related to the primary purpose of this study and understanding the effects of using technology in the classroom. Table 4 shows that the participants explained that when class became boring, they engaged with technology. All the participants reported using their laptops or cell phones for purposes unrelated to class. One participant shared,

I am really bad about being on my cell phone in class, like if anything is remotely disengaging, I am like, well Pinterest is right here. I no longer have to listen and I am just sitting here and I can obviously absorb any of that information while I am browsing Pinterest.

Table 4 Views of the Participants about the Emergent Technology as a Distraction
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Another participant explained that, in her college classes, she observed the majority of students using technology as a distraction. She reported that some students watched television shows on Netflix during class, “I know lots of people [students] who watch like shows on Netflix during class with subtitles. I am like this is totally different like I am not paying attention, you are completely not paying attention to anything.” Participants reported that they thought current high school students were more distracted by technology than they were in high school and that the use of technology in the classroom was continuing to increase. This increase necessitates finding a balance between using technology to enhance learning and it being a distraction from learning. Participants expressed a conflict between technology being useful in the classroom and it becoming a distraction. They reported that there needs to be regulations on technology as its use continues to increase. According to one participant,

I think that they [cell phones] can be beneficial, but I think they are abused a lot of the time especially in a high school classroom. I know students in my high school would always be listening to music or on their Facebook or Twitter or texting people.

4.3 Increased use of technology

As shows in Table 5 Participants expressed that, whether technology was used to enhance learning or became a distraction, its use would increase. This led to another theme, The Increased Use of Technology. All the participants reported that the use of technology would increase with an increased emphasis on integrating it into learning. This was noted more in primary and secondary schools than at the university level. Participants expressed that the integration of technology in the classroom would increase,

I think it [new technology] will increase significantly. I think more tablets will be in the classroom eventually with funding. And there will be more notes online, everything is online, and a lot of projects will be online, instead of making a physical poster board, students will just be able to make something, some kind of presentation in that sense.

Table 5 Views of the participants about increased use of technology
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Additionally, students expressed that, eventually, classrooms would be completely technology based, that overhead projectors and chalkboards would not be utilized, and that everything would be conducted using technology. One participant suggested that

. . . right now we learn off of boards and sometimes computers and I feel like in the next five years, most people will switch to using just straight-up technologies. Like iPads and Apple TVs to give instructions and notes rather than writing down on a board. I think technology will increase in the next five years.

Participants expressed mixed feelings about the increased use of technology; some saw it as a “huge asset to the classroom,” while others viewed it as a “huge problem.”

4.4 Instructor lack of knowledge

The instructor contributes to how technology is used and if it is a problem or beneficial. This led to the emergence of the final theme: instructors may have the technology available for use but are unable to utilize it (these findings were categorized under the theme “Instructor Lack of Knowledge”). Table 6 indicates that participants reported that their high school and college classrooms had access to technology, but teachers reported being unable to use it. Instructors may have had white-boards in their classroom but used chalkboards. One participant reported,

. . . We had Smart Boards in most of our classrooms, but they were almost never used. My chemistry teacher used it once. My library actually used it a couple times, but they did not know fully know how to work it because they never used it.

Table 6 Views of the Participants about Instructor Lack of Knowledge
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Another participant further reported that “...I think that senior year we started getting Smart Boards but none of the teachers knew how to use them.”

Additionally, participants expressed that instructors had access to online platforms for learning such as Blackboard but did not utilize them. Participants frequently reported that instructors were unable to utilize basic technology such as email,

. . . a lot of teachers struggled with their email in my high school so it either did not go through or it got lost or ended up in spam, so a lot of the time we did not have a good structured time to ask a lot of questions besides what we were doing in class.”

Participants also reported that instructors underutilized programs such as PowerPoint,

“I have one teacher who reads off her notes and what is being said will be typed out but she doesn’t have a PowerPoint beforehand or anything to review after.” Another participant expressed that when the instructor used PowerPoint, “she just was not good at them.” Instructors use of technology at the collegiate level was reported to be less than teachers in primary and secondary schools, “[My university] doesn’t seem like they utilize technology.”

One participant likened an instructor’s use of technology to coffee,

I read this model and it compared it [technology integration] to coffee. So you have the standard model, which is just plain black coffee, and there is one where you add cream and they compare it to like a latte, and then like the best way possible to do it is a caramel macchiato. All of these things are working together to make something really basic and generic really good and it enhances it so that was really interesting just because like it is really important to realize there is a diverse group of learners and that there are ways you can use technology, like its 2015, technology is a huge part of everyday life.

When asked where her university fell within this model, and she reported at the black coffee and cream level; the technology was available but underutilized. She foresaw primary and secondary classrooms moving towards the macchiato level.

5 Discussion

The purpose of this study was to see the students’ perception of the use of emergent technology as a learning tool within high school classroom settings. We expected that there was a chance that students would welcome the idea of using emergent technology for their educational learning and to enhance learning, as the results showed strong responses of strongly agree to support the idea of using the emergent technology for learning.

The results indicated a significant difference between participants who used technology in their classrooms regarding the perception of the use of technology as a tool to enhance learning and technology as a distraction. In spite of this difference between participants in their perceptions of using technology in the classroom, technology was identified more often as a tool to enhance learning. We expected that the differing perceptions among students might be because they were undergraduate students, and the climate of classrooms at the undergraduate level was different from those in high schools. The large size of classrooms and less engaging classes may have played a critical role in instructors’ losing control of the classroom. Also, distraction occurs when the class became boring through the instructors’ adoption of a conventional learning approach in the absence of effective regulations of technology use within the classroom. However, students spend huge amounts time on technology during class time either for social interaction or other ways to escape boredom.

The results revealed students’ perception of the future of technology use in the classroom setting as an urgent need to keep up with the times. Also, the results may push people to use technology for educational purposes if courses are built and designed in an efficient way so that users can take advantage of technology use for learning purposes. The results showed that students differed in their perceptions of instructors in how emergent technology was used. The majority of participants indicated that some instructors were unable to utilize an emergent technology in the classroom setting. We expected that the lack of knowledge, lack of workshops, and lack of training courses for instructors made them feel uncomfortable with technology or sceptical of it. Thus, it is important to offer professional support and train instructors how to adopt emergent technology across their discipline areas.

6 Conclusions

In essence, the present study has shed light on the use of emergent technology as a tool to enhance learning as well as emergent technology being a distraction within a high school setting. This study makes three main contributions: first, emergent technology has been an appreciated tool for general use by college students, and the perception of the use of emergent technology as a learning tool has been positive. Second, from the participants’ point of view, there was an urgent need for instructors to learn how to use emergent technology to increase the effectiveness of using technology in the classroom setting and make them effective native digital instructors. Third, from the participants’ point of view, using emergent technology as a distraction occurs when the class becomes boring because of the instructors adopting the conventional learning approach in the absence of effective regulations for using technology within the classroom. Moreover, the large size of classrooms and less engaging classes may have played a critical role in using emergent technology as a distraction.

7 Limitations and future research

Although the present study findings seem promising, they should be interpreted in light of some limitations. First, increasing the sample of undergraduate students and engaging graduate students in the sample would provide a clearer picture of the general population of college students. Second, the above study is based on data collected from students between the ages of 18 and 21 who had graduated high school between 2 and 4 years prior. Therefore, the results cannot be generalized to all K-12 students. Future research needs participants in middle school in order to explore students’ experiences with using emergent technology in the learning process. Third, as the present study represents the students’ perspective, we believe that examining teachers’ perception of using emergent technology—particularly laptops, tablets, and smart-phones—could shed more light on the integration of it in teaching and learning.