Perceptions of the Educational Benefits of Mobile Devices in Language Teaching and Learning Ana R. Luís ( ✉ ) University of Coimbra, Coimbra, Portugal aluis@fl.uc.pt Abstract. This study investigates perceptions of the educational benefits of mobile devices in language teaching and learning. Within the context of Initial Teacher Education, MA students answered a semi-structured questionnaire containing questions about (a) their level of comfort with their mobile devices, (b) their own learning experiences with mobile devices and (c) their future teaching perspectives as English language teachers. The results reveal that a significant discrepancy exists between the students’ level of comfort, on the one hand, and their familiarity with the educational uses of mobile devices, on the other. Explicit training in the use of mobile devices as learning and teaching tools, with a focus on specific subject areas, is therefore needed in Initial Teacher Education programs to ensure that future teachers are capable of using mobile devices effectively. Keywords: Pre-service teachers · Students’ perceptions · Mobile devices Initial teacher education 1 Introduction Current pre-service teachers in Portugal belong to a generation that has been informally named the M-Generation, i.e., the last generation to be born in the 20 th century. Roughly defined, this generation of pre-service teachers has grown up with computers and unlimited access to the Internet. Most of all, they are known for feeling comfortable using digital technology, and they own one (or more) mobile devices [1]. This generation however has also experienced conflicting approaches to the use of mobile devices in education. In Portugal, they have witnessed a legal ban on the use of mobile phones in classrooms: “Do not use any technological equipment, such as mobile phones, equipment, programs or computer applications, during class or other training activities or school meetings in which you participate, except when the use of any of the above is directly related to the activities to be developed and is explicitly authorized by the teacher or the person in charge of directing or supervising the work or activities in progress” [2]. However, at University a different scenario has been taking place. There they have seen mobile computers being gradually introduced into educational contexts and © Springer International Publishing AG, part of Springer Nature 2018 Á. Rocha et al. (Eds.): WorldCIST'18 2018, AISC 746, pp. 1406–1415, 2018. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-77712-2_135