As a public service announcement I want to share this research with you (and no, it's not mine but I wish it was) on a topic that is close to our hearts: Can they really multi-task with their phones and laptops on in class?Evan F. Risko, Dawn Buchanan, Srdan Medimorec, Alan Kingstone. Everyday attention: Mind wandering and computer use during lectures, Computers & Education, Volume 68, October 2013, pp. 275-283. Abstract: The influx of technology into the classroom presents a serious challenge for educators and researchers. One of the greatest challenges is to better understand, given our knowledge of the demands of dual tasking, how the distraction posed by this technology influences educational outcomes. In the present investigation we explore the impact of engaging in computer mediated non-lecture related activities (e.g., email, surfing the web) during a lecture on attention to, and retention of, lecture material. We test a number of predictions derived from existing research on dual tasking. Results demonstrate a significant cost of engaging in computer mediated non-lecture related activities to both attention and retention of lecture material, a reduction in the frequency of mind wandering during the lecture, and evidence for difficulty coordinating attention in lectures with distractions present. Discussion focuses on the theoretical and practical implications of these results for dividing attention in the classroom.Let me put the results in a nutshell: No they can't. They can't multitask. They learn less when they fuss with their phones and Facebook. So tell them, SCIENCE has determined that they need every toy to be off during class.
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Mod note: Reading the full article costs $24.95 and the blog has not obtained a free copy for anyone to read. We cannot forward it to you, is what I'm saying.
Boom! Too bad no one else but us proffies really cares about research.
ReplyDeleteAnd not only does it distract them, it distracts their classmates (and lowers their grades too)--here's a previous article by Canadian researchers that's been getting a lot of attention in our national media lately:
ReplyDeleteFaria Sanaa, Tina Weston, Nicholas J. Cepeda. Laptop multitasking hinders classroom learning for both users and nearby peers, Computers & Education Volume 62, March 2013, pp 24–31. (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0360131512002254). Abstract: "Laptops are commonplace in university classrooms. In light of cognitive psychology theory on costs associated with multitasking, we examined the effects of in-class laptop use on student learning in a simulated classroom. We found that participants who multitasked on a laptop during a lecture scored lower on a test compared to those who did not multitask, and participants who were in direct view of a multitasking peer scored lower on a test compared to those who were not. The results demonstrate that multitasking on a laptop poses a significant distraction to both users and fellow students and can be detrimental to comprehension of lecture content."
So not only are they lowering their own grades, they're lowering the grades of those around them who are trying to focus on the class.
Very cool - thanks!
DeleteThat Suzy, wow, she blinded me with science.
ReplyDeleteYay. We can just drop it in right there. NO STUDENTS BAD STUDENTS.
ReplyDeleteIf you'd like a copy of the article mentioned in the post, you might email the author for a copy.
ReplyDeleteGreat article. You might be able to get it for free like I did if your library subscribes to this journal. I just clicked on the CM link to the article from WITHIN the University system, it recognized that my IP address was from a subscriber and gave me instant access to the article.
ReplyDeleteStudents might believe that your classroom ban on electronics is supported by science but they will not care and hate you.
ReplyDeleteGosh, and water is wet. I wonder if they got government funding to come up with a conclusion we already knew.
ReplyDeleteThanks, Suzy! I will make handouts from both abstracts and use them as examples the day we cover peer review and tackling a scientific article.
ReplyDeleteIt's nice to have this research to back up what most of us already know. It's a challenge at LD3C, though, where the admin worships at the altar of technology.
ReplyDeleteSee also "Digital Nation: Life on the Virtual Fontier" (Frontline 3 Feb 2010, full video available online at PBS.org). Stanford psych prof Dr Clifford Nass has been conducting research on students who call themselves "high multitaskers" and it turns out that those students are worse on just about every test he can give them. In my writing classes, I have students read and summarize articles that point out that they can't actually multitask, and a number of them will write about finding this out (or having their suspicions confirmed) in their reflective end of term portfolio letter. Many of them know that they can't do good work if there are a lot of distract s, but they've been sold a bill of goods by electronics manufacturers that they will somehow be more productive with various devices pinging at them incessantly while they're trying to read, or write a draft of an essay.
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