Smartphone Use for Language Learning Before and After the COVID-19 Lockdown

Smartphones have massive potential for supporting language learning as they provide access to various resources, enable language practice opportunities, and facilitate interactions with other speakers in the target language. This article draws on an ongoing PhD project that investigates how some university learners in Saudi Arabia utilise their smartphones to develop their English language proficiency. The data for this research were collected through interviews with a group of female foundation-year students at a university in Saudi Arabia. The semi-structured interviews were conducted in 2019 and 2020 before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper considers the influence of the lockdown and online distance learning on students’ use of devices and their motivation to use them to learn English. The findings of this study offer insight into how external circumstances and relationships with technology affect the use of mobile devices in language learning.