The potential of an “app” that facilitates smartphone exploration in the classroom

Abstract

Today we are living difficult times due to the pandemic situation we are facing, schools reinvent themselves daily and “finally” reach to technology to get to the student, whether through a simple but sometimes complex videoconference or a myriad of other applications that always depend on the knowledge and skills of each teacher in the technical field and in the pedagogical acuity of adapting the resource to the training purpose. Simulators, games and robots, among other resources, which will culminate in the integration of Artificial Intelligence in education, are at an advanced stage of incorporation of technology, but there are intermediate phases with potential that are important to disseminate so as to be explored.

Often considered a distractor, the smartphone does, however, play an important role in learning. Always available with internet access, it allows information search, collaborative work, image, video, sound, games, virtual and/or augmented reality, among other potentialities. It can better motivate and involve students in their learning process and in the development of transversal skills such as creativity, communication, cooperation and critical thinking.

Despite the numerous apps available, it is difficult to identify those that are appropriate for teaching and learning, in any particular topic in each subject. Thus, in November 2019, we provided our teachers with a repertoire of apps, through an application developed by us that allowed them to discover, install, try and use them, in the context of the classroom. At the same time, they can evaluate them and share with the community examples of good practices in their use. This study seeks to identify the effective use given to this app in its different features by the teaching community.

The satisfaction recognised by the teaching community regarding this resource brings together the relevant factors that allow the dynamic evolution of this project.