The Influence of Smartphone Over-dependence on the Recall of Basic Mathematics among Mathematics Education Students in a Nigerian University

Recent decades have seen dramatic increase in the amount of technology available to and used by children, a fact that has clearly shaped the way children learn mathematics. An unintended outcome of technology integration in mathematics education is the growing dependence among students on the internet as a source of information previously committed to memory. This study employs a simple survey to determine how the ubiquity of smart phones among mathematics education students influence their ability to recall basic mathematics concepts. Structured Basic Mathematics Recall Task (BMRT) and Smartphones Influence on Mathematics Recall Questionnaire (SIMRQ) were developed for the study and administered to a random sample of 180 mathematics education students. Simple percentages and means were used to analyze the data obtained from the BMRT and SIMRQ. The outcomes of the study indicate that 46.7% of mathematics education students could correctly recall formulas and values of basic mathematical constants, 31.6% could correctly provide the statement and definition of basic math concepts, and 28.3% could correctly tell when to use a particular formula under specific conditions. The results of the study reveal that processes of human memory are adapting to the advent of digital technology, with students displaying low recall of foundational facts and high impatience to quickly rush to the internet in quest of information previously memorized. The findings of this study points to the fact that true mathematical prowess in the current age is only achievable through the conscious effort of the learner in internalizing basic mathematical concepts and regular practice of learnt facts. Based on the findings, it was recommended that students should be guided through measured technology integration in mathematics instructional delivery to avoid over-dependence on technological tools