Students’ concentration in classroom crashes from computers

Students’ concentration in classroom crashes from computers

People find technology useful, but teachers say laptops are problem in class

By Brian Mezerski

            Immediacy.  Efficiency.  Ownership.  Three words teachers used to describe how having laptops in the classroom has affected their students.

            And although it’s true technology provides students with great opportunities, some teachers use only one word to classify laptops.

            Distraction.

            “We teachers fight this battle with students almost every time we use laptops in the classroom,” said Julia Buffington, a math teacher at Graham High School.

            Buffington said, in addition to normal classroom activity, students face another challenge to stay focused when laptops are added to the mix.

            “Many high school students would go to websites that they are not supposed to visit if they had a laptop that they used daily,” Buffington said.

            All personal electronics, such as cell phones and MP3 players, are prohibited in Graham High School classrooms.  Teachers discourage the use of personal technology in high school so teachers can maintain a balance of educational opportunities for students, Buffington said.

            “I think that we are trying to make sure active learning is taking place in the classrooms,” she said.

            Active learning does not mean removing technology completely from schools.  All classrooms in Graham High School are equipped with interactive white boards along with a camera and laptop for teacher sue.  There are laptop computer carts teachers use for activities and specific online learning.

            And, Buffington said, students are not hindered from using technology on their own time at school.

            “We also have several computer labs on campus,” Buffington said.  “Students can go to the computer labs to use the computers before school, during lunch and after school or with their class.”

            Sometimes, though, technology is positively integrated into classroom opportunities.

            Jon Burr, who teaches composition, studies at Elon University, said how and where students write is important.  Burr allows students to bring their own laptops to class because of the nature of the courses he teaches.

            “When students have their laptops,” Burr said, “we can quickly access their current project at any stage of this process and, essentially, move the process forward.”

            Because they could have their personal laptops in Burr’s classes, students could conduct fruitful in-class writing and research relevant to their projects.  Burr said the immediacy with which a project could be accessed and the intimate nature of working on one’s own machine result in more positive experiences for students.

            “There is a sense of ownership and control that is present when an individual has his or her own laptop instead of a classroom computer,” Burr said.

            Even though Burr said he hopes students bring their laptops to class to have their writing at their fingertips and to more efficiently make progress, he’s not naïve about how students may be using them.

            “At the same time, realistically,” Burr said, “I do suspect that laptops are brought to class to serve as a distraction.  Given how attached most students are to social media networks, I imagine it is difficult to completely disconnect.”

            Katherine Larson, a first-year student at Elon University, doesn’t bring her computer to class for that exact reason.  She knows she’ll distract herself.

            “I do not normally use my laptop during class to take notes,” Larson said, “because I find myself being distracted by Facebook or other things rather than concentrating on the class.  I find computers to be a distraction with access to everything.”

            Larson said there were many times she brought her laptop to class in case she had to email a document to a printer or access anything online.  But Larson still found using a laptop for coursework was not successful.

            “I find it more effective to hand write my notes,” Larson said, “because it forces me to hand write them and then read over them before I type them out.”

            Although this study technique worked best for her, Larson said students should not be prevented from having access to technology.

            “Because students learn differently,” Larson said, “it is fine for some students to have their laptops in class.”

            Larson said allowing laptops in the classroom might help promote self-discipline for the students with a computer who can focus only on the class.

            Larson concluded, “Props to them.”