Social Excursions During the In-between Spaces of Lessons. Students’ Smartphone Use in the Upper Secondary School Classroom

Olin-Scheller, Christina; Tanner, Marie; Asplund, Stig-Börje; Kontio, Janne; Wikström, Peter

doi:10.1080/00313831.2020.1739132

Cited by 6 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…The finding that obligations to peers were a key driver of the need to remain reachable by smartphone at all times, supports the findings of others (Allaby & Shannon, 2020;Toh et al, 2019). The description of the 'domino effect' of off-task activity in class being prompted by peers appears not to have been previously reported in the literature, but it could be applied to explain Olin-Scheller et al's (2021) description of a sequence of smartphone interactions among a group of students as they wait for instructions (see p. 621). Additionally, this could be an example of the role of descriptive norms as a determinant of the intention to cyberloaf in the classroom (Taneja et al, 2015).…”

Section: Peer Influencesupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Two recent video ethnographic studies are worthy of particular note as they use video recordings of classroom activities, combined with device screen recordings, to investigate natural classroom use of digital devices including smartphones. In a study of 18-19-year-old students' classroom smartphone use in Sweden, Olin-Scheller et al (2021) found that while student-initiated smartphone use was primarily for off-task social media interactions, most use was limited to periods of low teaching intensity and was smoothly integrated into the "inbetween spaces" (p.628) within the flow of a lesson. The authors acknowledge the possibility that social pressure to keep connected may lead students to create opportunities during class to engage with their smartphones and that there may be some associated cognitive costs that the study did not address (Olin-Scheller et al, 2021).…”

Section: Extent Of Digital Distraction In the Classroommentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This reflects the challenge of developing a functional and meaningful definition of digital distraction (Aagaard, 2015b). Additionally, research suggests that students integrate smartphone breaks into the "in-between spaces" (p. 628) created by the natural ebb and flow of lessons, thereby reducing the likelihood that it distracts from learning (Olin-Scheller et al, 2021). This could be characterised as students effectively managing the distraction.…”

Section: What Qualifies As Distraction?mentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Managing variation in student motivation and focus in the classroom is not a new consideration for teachers, however the outward sign of disinterest indicated by off-task smartphone use may be a relatively obvious signal that teachers, and other students, may find hard to ignore. Meanwhile, teachers may allow some tolerance for phone use during the natural 'in-between spaces' of lessons (Olin-Scheller et al, 2021), considering these instances to be less distracting (Sahlström et al, 2019). Teachers' management of this will contribute to setting descriptive norms in the class.…”

Section: Classroom Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Smartphone Distraction in the Secondary Classroom

Delaney¹

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Smartphones are a ubiquitous feature of adolescent life, and their capacity to enable social connections ensures that they play a central role in the adolescent experience. In the classroom, the smartphone provides a potential distraction from learning and may be associated with negative academic outcomes. There has been limited research into the everyday use of smartphones in secondary classrooms, particularly regarding how adolescents view and manage the potential for distraction. This study applied interpretative phenomenological analysis to explore the student experience of smartphone-related distraction in the Secondary school classroom and the experience of an educative intervention intended to empower students to take action to reduce distraction. Participants from two senior Secondary classes in New Zealand took part in the study, with data collected using questionnaires and focus group interviews. Data were analysed with respect to student perceptions of smartphone-related distractions and their effects, actions students take to reduce distraction, and their motivation to take action. Distractions associated with smartphones were found to be widespread and frequent, but not perceived to be detrimental to learning, and smartphone use was characterised as habitual. While awareness of smartphone distractions increased following the intervention, students did not take ongoing autonomous action to reduce distraction. The experience of smartphone distraction, and motivation to reduce it, was found to be dependent on aspects of the classroom context such as peers, the teacher and the class itself. Variation in the student experience of smartphone distraction, and of the intervention, is described in this study through the presentation of six narrative student profiles. The narrative student profiles, together with identification of the factors that influence classroom smartphone distraction, provide insights that may aid in the development of effective distraction management strategies and interventions.

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Section: Peer Influencesupporting

confidence: 84%

Section: Extent Of Digital Distraction In the Classroommentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: What Qualifies As Distraction?mentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Classroom Contextmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Smartphone Distraction in the Secondary Classroom

Delaney¹

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“…In addition, changes that occur in the in-between space can affect students' personal development (Bhabha, 1996;Dai, 2020;Dai and Hardy, 2021). Vilsmaier and Lang (2015) and Olin-Scheller et al (2021) also pointed out that students look for feedback and support for sustainability learning in the in-between spaces. The complicated transition processes of moving from community college to university space may create turbulent pathways for transfer students.…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceptions and Challenges of Engineering and Science Transfer Students From Community College to University in a Chinese Educational Context

et al. 2022

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In Hong Kong, transfer students encounter different challenges unfolding in their transition from community college to university study. However, limited research has been conducted to explore their discipline-specific challenges. To address this gap, in this study three engineering and science faculties were selected from which to collect data through 35 in-depth interviews with transfer students, followed by a thorough thematic analysis. With the concept of in-betweenness, three main themes were identified: (1) “shifted the focus of study” (three sub-themes: (i) academic excellence in community college; (ii) future career in the university; and (iii) university life); (2) “encountered challenges in the transition” (four sub-themes: (i) non-matching program articulation; (ii) heavy study workload and its associated consequences; and (iii) non-specific administration arrangement and support from university); and (3) “students’ voices to enhance learning experiences” (four sub-themes: (i) modify the study duration; (ii) improve program articulation; (iii) improve social adjustment; and (iv) overseas exchange). The results of this study indicate the challenges faced by transfer students in their transition from community college to university and have implications for universities to design and implement appropriate strategies to prepare for the future.

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