Aspects of Ownership, Permits and Educational Usage of Portable Devices from Elementary School to College

The aim of our research is to explore the ownership distribution of mobile devices from elementary school, junior high school, senior high school and university students from urban settings in Ensenada, Mexico. We analyze the role of permits and restrictions regarding the use of mobile devices in educational contexts and in what measure some pedagogical strategies implemented by docents respond to such challenge. Our survey included 2 635 students from the four educational levels of our study. Ownership of mobile phones shows an upward trend related to educational levels. While the ownership percentage in elementary school arrives at 58%, in university reaches 97%. Regarding the use of tablets, we found that the ownership level in elementary school reaches a maximum of 46%. It is noteworthy that elementary school students start using the cell phone at the average age of 7.8 years. We observed that it is at elementary school and junior high school levels where students experience prohibition and restriction policies on the use of mobile devices, however, in senior high school and college levels, the use of mobile devices for educational use, though incipient, is becoming more relevant. The pedagogical potential of mobile devices is important, but requires of the implementation of a new vision and purpose of education mediated with technology.