A REVIEW OF INTEGRATING MOBILE PHONES FOR LANGUAGE LEARNING

Mobile learning (m-learning) is gradually being introduced in language classrooms. All forms of mobile technology represent portability with smarter features. Studies have proven the concomitant role of technology beneficial for language learning. Various features in the technology have been exploited and researched for acquiring and learning languages. This paper presents a review of empirical studies on the integration of mobile phones in language learning contexts published from 2004 to 2013, a total of ten years. Studies on m-learning for languages were located and retrieved using Google Scholar and library databases. Thirty-three (33) studies were analysed using Nvivo software. The main findings include: (a) Japan as the country which contributed the most studies employing mobile phones; (b) tertiary learners are the most prolific participants of studies; (c) vocabulary is the most popular language area learnt on mobile phones; and (d) quantitative is the most popular research design chosen. The list of the studies is not exhaustive and comprehensive; but it supports the potential of integrating mobile phones as a learning tool to enhance language learning