The Role of Mobile Devices on Online EFL Skill Courses During Covid-19 - Abstract

Oct 15, 2026

The study examines mobile experiences during emergency remote education for EFL skill courses in the context of Covid-19. Because smartphones, tablets, and notebooks are widely used, EFL learners turned to mobile devices for online courses, yet long-course use involved constraints. Forty-seven EFL preparatory students reflected for each skill course using three categories: mobile-device limitations, effects on in-classroom interaction, and device satisfaction. Findings show learners mainly used smartphones or notebooks, faced limitations like limited screen size, overheating, microphone issues, and unstable internet efficiency, while satisfaction rates were low especially for smartphones.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages14

Reading Time35 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

Emergency remote education context

Study aim and participants

Reflection categories and findings

Limitations and satisfaction results

Acuity: Journal of English Language Pedagogy, Literature, and Culture. Vol.6 No. 2, 2021 [https://jurnal.unai.edu/index.php/acuity](https://jurnal.unai.edu/index.php/acuity) The Role of Mobile Devices on Online EFL Skill Courses During Covid-19 Emergency Remote Education Emrah Dolgunsöz, 1 Bayburt University, Dept. ofELT, Bayburt, TURKEY [edolgunsoz@gmail.com](edolgunsoz@gmail.com) [http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1277-2177](http://orcid.org/0000-0002-1277-2177) Gürkan Yıldırım,2 Bayburt University, Dept. of Computer Education and Instructional Technology, Bayburt, TURKEY [gyildirim@bayburt.edu.tr](gyildirim@bayburt.edu.tr) [http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1314-0275](http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1314-0275) [DOI: 10.35974/acuity.v6i2.2486](DOI: 10.35974/acuity.v6i2.2486) Abstract The recent Covid-19 based emergency remote education caught educational practitioners unprepared and caused learners to rely on any technology which offered them the best pedagogical solution. Since mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets, and notebooks are widely used in daily life, EFL learners also preferred to utilize them for online courses due to their undisputable mobility. However, using mobile devices in long online EFL courses is not without its limitations. This study aimed to examine the mobile experience during EFL skill courses in emergency remote education. 47 EFL preparatory class students who were attending online courses for 4 months with their mobile devices were asked to write a reflection for each skill course based on three main categories: Limitations of mobile devices, effects of mobile devices on in-classroom interaction, and device satisfaction rates. The initial findings addressed that EFL learners commonly used smartphones or notebooks for online courses rather than desktop PCs and tablets. Secondly, our results revealed various limitations for each EFL course such as limited screen size, overheating, microphone problems, and internet connection efficiency. On the other hand, although mobile devices were reported to have worked fine for in-class communication, device satisfaction rates regarding online courses were low, especially for smartphones. Keywords: emergency remote education, EFL, mobile devices, online course INTRODUCTION Today, it can easily be observed that mobile technologies have diversified. In this context, small computers containing extraordinary computing power such as notebooks, personal digital assistants (PDAs), smartphones, and e-book readers are among the mobile technologies (Sung et al., 2016) . Recent rapid and stunning developments in mobile technologies have made mobile devices an indispensable part ofour lives. They have also been Corresponding Author: Emrah Dolgunsöz, Bayburt University, Faculty of Education, room 304, Bayburt/TURKEY, Dept. of ELT, Bayburt, TURKEY, [69000. email:](69000. email:) [edolgunsoz@gmail.com](edolgunsoz@gmail.com) attached to education systems for more than a decade and became a crucial component of the online education experience. Mobile devices even became prominent mediums of online education during the Covid-19 pandemic. Due to the pandemic, educational institutions had togo for a global cancellation of face-to-face practice for public health and adopted a new form of distance education system called “emergency remote education”(Hodges et al., 2020) . Now that education in all fields and degrees was carried out online without compromising weekly class hours and curricula. Emergency remote education (ERE) is fairly new and emergent with viable optimization caveats (Russell, 2020) . It was adopted urgently due to the Covid-19 pandemic and caught most institutions and instructors unprepared. One of the most affected fields and the focus of the current study was learning English as a foreign language (EFL) which is a communicative practice by its nature. EFL practice emphasizes a social classroom environment that exists in face-to-face class

FAQs

What was the purpose of the study?

The study aimed to examine mobile experience during EFL skill courses within emergency remote education.

How were participants asked to provide data?

Forty-seven EFL preparatory class students wrote reflections for each skill course using three categories: device limitations, interaction effects, and satisfaction rates.

What limitations of mobile devices were reported?

Reported limitations included limited screen size, overheating, microphone problems, and internet connection efficiency.

Oct 15, 2026

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