Students’ Use of Mobile Devices in Self-Studying English

This study investigates how university students use mobile devices to support their English selfstudy. A mixed-method approach was employed, combining quantitative and qualitative data collection. The quantitative phase involved 104 first-year students (78 females and 26 males) at a university in Vietnam. Ten of these students (5 females and 5 males) also participated in semi-structured interviews for the qualitative phase. The results revealed that the five most frequent activities were searching for information online, listening to songs and lectures, looking up new words, reading books and newspapers, in addition to watching videos. The most popular resources utilized were online audio and video platforms (e.g., YouTube, Apple Music, Spotify, and podcasts) and social networking sites (e.g., Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram). While mobile devices offered benefits like accessibility, convenience, and motivation, students also faced challenges, including cost, connectivity issues, device compatibility, distractions, storage limitations, and the need for teacher guidance. Finally, students reported a perceived improvement in their English proficiency after four months of mobile device use.