Primary School Students' Perceptions About the Use of Mobile Games in the Classroom

Introduction

Nowadays, tablets and smartphones have become the central computing and communication devices in people's lives and activities (Courage, 2019; OFCOM, 2019). These devices differ from others (e.g. mobile phones, computers, laptops) due to their comprehensive and relatively advanced features, such as geo-positioning systems and web browsing capabilities, touch screen displays, Wi-Fi connectivity, and sophisticated built-in applications (Lee et al., 2019). These features have given rise to new communication capabilities (e.g. WhatsApp, Viber, Skype, and Snapchat) and forms of leisure time entertainment for young people (Ericsson, 2015, 2016), who are often referred to as “digital natives” (Barak, 2018; Prensky, 2001a, 2001b; Thompson, 2013), “the net generation” (Barak, 2018; Tapscott, 1998; Tapscott, 2008), or “the gamer generation” (Beck & Wade, 2004). According to national surveys conducted in different countries, the number of young people who use smartphones and tablets is increasing year by year (Eurostat, 2015; Ericsson, 2016; Lenhart, 2015; OFCOM, 2019; Pew Research Center, 2015). It has been argued that playing games on tablets and smartphones has become the primary leisure activity for the new generation. These games are called mobile games (Huizenga, Admiraal, ten Dam, & Voogt, 2019; Koutromanos & Avraamidou, 2014) and are usually included in either the currently existing game categories (e.g. simulation games, puzzles, adventure games) (Kirriemuir & McFarlane, 2004) or in new categories, such as location-based games (Reinhardt & Heinig, 2016), augmented reality games (Alha, Koskinen, Paavilainen, & Hamari, 2019; Koutromanos, Sofos & Avraamidou, 2015), or pervasive games (Arango-López, Valdivieso, Collazos, Vela, & Moreira, 2018; Kasapakis & Gavalas, 2015).

The growing popularity of games on tablets and smartphones as a leisure activity among young people (The Asian Parent, 2014; ESA, 2015; OFCOM, 2019) has led researchers to conclude that these games should also be used in formal learning environments to promote student engagement (Koutromanos & Avraamidou, 2014; Koutromanos et al., 2015). Previous review articles support that the games being played on mobile devices can have a significant impact on learning and the development of various skills among students in both formal and informal learning environments (Koutromanos & Avraamidou, 2014; Koutromanos et al., 2015). Furthermore, there are researchers who claim that games on mobile devices could overcome both the technological and curricular problems that arise in schools the moment students move to the computer laboratory to play digital games (Brom, Levcic, Buchtova, & Klement, 2015, p. 683).

Nonetheless, to successfully utilize educational games on tablets/smartphones in formal learning environments, it would be interesting to first examine the perceptions of the already engaged as gamers students, who already possess experience in playing mobile games as a recreational activity and they possibly have formed positive perceptions regarding the particular games. The perceptions of primary education students, in particular, must be examined. Primary education constitutes the first stage of compulsory education for students, where the foundations for their future performance in secondary school and higher education is laid (Hainey, Connolly, Boyle, Wilson, & Razak, 2016).