Usability Aspects Related to the Use of M-Learning in Elementary Schools in Palestine

Learning Chemistry course is considered as a difficult task for many learners especially for elementary school students. This is related to understanding different concepts chemical reactions atoms structures, physical representations of molecules, etc. One way to facilitate the learning process of chemistry course is to use Mobile Learning (m-learning) technology. M-learning has different added values compared to classical learning materials such as text book, pictures, etc. Among the different added values of using mobile in educational contexts is the fact that smartphone has richer interaction techniques. Furthermore, smartphones and tablets PC are considered as more attractive for students. Also, there has been a rapid growth in the mobile technology concerning hardware and software. Accordingly, with the widespread use of smartphones and tablets, researchers start investigating the use of such devices in different educational contexts. The use of mobile learning is considered as a recent trend in Palestinian elementary schools and there is a minimal research attention has been directed to the student’s attitudes and satisfaction in using m-learning in their learning process. Therefore, our work aims at investigating the use of m-learning by students in elementary schools in Palestine. In particular, we focused on female students as in general female students show less interest in science and technology than male students. We were keen to investigate whether the use of m-learning could change this attitude. Therefore, an educational mobile application called ChemApp was developed to help learners to learn different concepts in chemistry course such as elements’ order in the periodic table, electronic distribution, atomic and mass numbers, chemical bonds and formula. By using the ChemApp, the students are able to interact with different components to explore the possible reactions in an interactive interface, to understand the structure and shape of atoms and molecules. The ChemApp was evaluated by a class of 13-14 years old (8th grade) students in a Palestinian primary school. The total number of participants was 30 female students. After analyzing the results, we conclude that these female students had a positive attitude toward the use of m-learning in their learning process of chemistry course. The results of this research work can be considered by policy and decision makers in educational institutions.