Many schools in South Africa ban smartphones. The decision does
not take into account the views of the learners. The purpose of
this paper was to elicit learners’ views regarding smartphones in
schools. A survey design was used and data were collected from
93 learners using a questionnaire consisting of closed- and openended
items. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics for
the closed-ended items and taxonomical analysis was used for the
open-ended items. The results indicate that 55.9% of learners are
of the view that smartphones should be allowed in schools. The
results from the open-ended items show that information searching
and processing were the most prevalent views among learners.
While the learners acknowledged possible distractions using
smartphones in classrooms, their views included setting rules to
limit any misuse of smartphones in schools. This study recommends
further study on learners’ views regarding smartphones in schools.