Investigation of Digital Native Secondary School Students’ Perceptions of Technological Tools through Metaphors

Abstract

The rapid transformation in technology, particularly through mobile technologies and digital media tools, has led to significant changes in individuals’ daily lives. This situation makes it essential to examine the relationship that digital-native generations—such as middle school students—have with technology. The aim of this study is to analyze middle school students’ perceptions of the concepts of technology, smartphone, smart board, tablet, digital games, social media, and metaverse through metaphors. The research was designed using the phenomenological approach, one of the qualitative research methods, and data were collected from 160 middle school students. The data were analyzed using the metaphor analysis method developed by Saban (2008), and processes such as coding, categorization, validity-reliability studies, and thematic distributions were systematically carried out and reported. The findings revealed that students predominantly perceive technology as a tool for entertainment, convenience, and communication, while also recognizing its negative aspects such as addiction and complexity. Metaphors related to smartphones, digital games, and social media were largely clustered under the theme of “addiction,” whereas metaphors for educational tools like smart boards and tablets reflected more functional and positive perceptions. Additionally, students frequently associated the concept of metaverse with “the future” and “imagination.”. Based on the findings, it is recommended to develop digital educational content aligned with students’ perceptions, support teachers in integrating technology into their teaching practices, and implement programs to enhance digital literacy. Furthermore, future studies could focus on comparing different student groups in terms of their access to technology-enhanced learning experiences. This research provides valuable insights into students’ perceptions of digital technologies and highlights the importance of understanding the learner-centered dimension of technology use in education.

The rapid transformation in technology, particularly through mobile technologies and digital media tools, has led to significant changes in individuals’ daily lives. This situation makes it essential to examine the relationship that digital-native generations—such as middle school students—have with technology. The aim of this study is to analyze middle school students’ perceptions of the concepts of technology, smartphone, smart board, tablet, digital games, social media, and metaverse through metaphors. The research was designed using the phenomenological approach, one of the qualitative research methods, and data were collected from 160 middle school students. The data were analyzed using the metaphor analysis method developed by Saban (2008), and processes such as coding, categorization, validity-reliability studies, and thematic distributions were systematically carried out and reported. The findings revealed that students predominantly perceive technology as a tool for entertainment, convenience, and communication, while also recognizing its negative aspects such as addiction and complexity. Metaphors related to smartphones, digital games, and social media were largely clustered under the theme of “addiction,” whereas metaphors for educational tools like smart boards and tablets reflected more functional and positive perceptions. Additionally, students frequently associated the concept of metaverse with “the future” and “imagination.” Based on the findings, it is suggested to develop digital educational content aligned with students’ perceptions, support teachers in integrating technology into their teaching practices, and implement programs to enhance digital literacy. Furthermore, future studies could focus on comparing different student groups in terms of their access to technology-enhanced learning experiences. This research provides valuable insights into students’ perceptions of digital technologies and highlights the importance of understanding the learner-centered dimension of technology use in education.