Are You Distracted By Technology?

11/12/2012

Two recent surveys reveal a widespread belief among teachers that students have shorter attention spans because of their constant use of digital technology.

Read this article: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/11/01/education/technology-is-changing-how-students-learn-teachers-say.html

What do you think? Are you distracted by technology? Are smartphones, texting, video games, iPads, Facebook, Web surfing and television getting in the way of your learning? Remember, support your answer with some facts.

17 Comments

Ryan Carlson

11/12/2012 03:37:20 am

I must admit I have to believe technology is a major distraction to students. Even as I type I'm listing to my IPod!! PEW Research Center even made a point by showing that 90% of students agree that technology is a distraction for them. For me when I'm writing an essay report on my laptop I will constantly find myself on Facebook or Twitter realizing I have work to do. I believe teenagers need to step up and back away from those distractions more than ever.

Lane Merrill

11/12/2012 03:41:00 am

No. Technology if anything makes information easier to acces while doing homework, researching a topic of a paper or studying. Although texting (in class) can distract you for a few seconds to read/ reply to a text but i dont think it is a big enough distraction to cause any sort of problems. Talking on the phone for example is very distracting in any environment wheather it be at school, at home doing homework or just sitting at home, for example have you ever tried to read a book while talking on the phone? its not happening as long as you have to give the other person your attention to carry on a conversation. on the other hand texting only requires short breaks from your task to type a quick message or read one, which can be done in under a minute then the texter can get back to doing whatever they are doing. although texting does cause a distraction i dont think it is enough of a distraction for there to be an issue

Jacob Kane

11/12/2012 03:44:49 am

I do not feel as though technology is a distraction in itself. You have the choice as a person to decide whether you want to watch TV or reply to a text. The technology is just a device, it doesnt force you to get distracted.

Drew

11/12/2012 03:48:10 am

I think that students are affected by the technology in this day of age. Smart phones are the biggest distractions; they carry Facebook, Twitter, and texting all in one device. Not that any of these software’s are bad, I’m just saying that when a student has a quiz the next day or homework due, it will take a lot longer to adequately do or prepare for the these tasks. Personally I am not distracted to my smartphone. I manage my time between texting and homework quite fairly that complete and understand it.

Lucas Johnson

11/12/2012 03:48:52 am

At school I am not distracted by technology. I think I have a good attention span, I can stay on task. Now there are some kids that I know that they cannot pay attention. This may be because they may have problems or might have been changed by the composition of media. Now I know I do not spend a whole time on the computer or watching TV. But when I am I usually do things, such as when I am on the computer I am programming, looking up tab for guitar, or blogging. I do not want to be coastally be entertained, in fact I would find that horribly distracting and irritating. I like the information given to in a dry way. School is not a comedy act, I do want me English teacher to act like George Carlin to teach me about appositive phrases. I do know that some people might need this, so therefore they should receive help. I have never got home work not done because of technology, now I have forgotten to do it. I have none technology distractions, such as playing music, writing, drawing, nature walking, and meditation. So I know I am not part of the norm, so I would not know exactly what to say about other people.

Stephen Bowles

11/12/2012 03:53:24 am

I can only speak for myself. Technology is not impacting me in a negative way, as may readily be seen in my grades, memory capacity, and reasoning skills. Whether or not I am doing something different than others, I can't say. As I said, "I can only speak for myself."

Brad Hall

11/12/2012 04:01:05 am

Im a naturaly destracted person but for me i just dont like the idea of sitting down and haveing to hear what im supose to do i like to look at stuff and play wiht it a bit to figure it out. So yeah I can see how people are becomeing more destracted do to technology but i think its just everyone changing from an oral learning style to more of a physical learning style. what i mean is that people seem more wanting to figure stuff out in there own way like with there hands and there heads and also i dont think i need constant entertainment to learn but i dont want to here my science teacher leachture about photosynthesis for an hour straight either mabye a mixture of the two would be nice.

Travis Miller

11/12/2012 04:01:17 am

I think technology can be distracting. But technology isnt all to blame because technology just cant use itself it needs an operator. So i think getting distracted by technology is a choice that that person has made, and they will pay for it at sometime.

Richelle Bell

11/12/2012 04:02:12 am

When I am home I relax, and watch some TV, get on the computer some times, but it isn’t the only thing I look forward to everyday when I get home. I don’t think teacknolagy has affected teenagers as much as it has affected younger kids. Young kids have always had that in their life so that’s all they know. Like my nephew, he is a really smart kid, but anytime he comes over the first thing he asks for is someone’s phone to play a game on, it’s not good that kids only want technology these days. I mean a little is good but too much s too much. It is making it so kids don’t play well with each other when, they do is stay inside and watch TV or play video games. It’s because they don’t get any one on one with people and its not good for them.

Ryker COwles

11/13/2012 02:53:39 am

O don't know about you becuase i tend to go faster when listioning to my music and doing work as for texting... it's quite obvious becuase you have to (for the most part) use both hands to text there for stoping work.

Kayla

11/16/2012 03:12:46 am

Take the time to read ur comment. Spelling things wrong will get you marked down. As Mrs. George said when we first started.

Connor Hays

11/13/2012 03:47:28 am

I think in some cases yes technology can be a distraction, but for the most part I feel it could be a valuable asset in the tools of teaching. Technology has opened up so many other and many more efficient way for gaining knowledge that teachers should not be afraid of it but embrace our generations interest in it. While I do agree that some forms of technology can be distracting, I think it can be a good thing and so do some of the teachers in the survey.

Amanda Loughry

11/14/2012 03:10:35 am

I believe that some technology is a major distraction in education, and in some ways it can be helpful. I also think that it depends on each individual student because everyone learns in a different way. For example, during test, some students do better reading the test themselves, and some do better with the test being read to them.
With technology, some things, such as smartboards, can be used to make teaching easier. I think that cell phone usage can be distracting. Social sites, like facebook and twitter, are also a huge distraction. Many teenagers are busy playing video games, texting, or being on the internet to focus on their school work. I have even done this myself before. With technology such as IPods and MP3 Players, or even TV's (at home) that usually depends on the indiviual wether or not its a distraction because some people work better with, or without, "background sound".

Mackenzie Monroe

11/14/2012 03:52:39 am

I think that technology hurts us somewhat by distracting us, but also helps us, especially in school. Technology isn’t getting in the way for me at all, it’s helping me. I use search engines like Google and Bing every day for my homework, and most of my teachers tell me to, so I don’t know why all of these teachers are complaining about how bad technology is when it helps them too! They use computers for everything they do. 75% of the teachers that were surveyed said that using search engines on the internet had a positive impact on students. Teachers have a right to complain about cell phones and iPods, but those aren’t the only technology. Think about smart boards that teachers are provided with and use every day. They shouldn’t rule out all technology.

Ryker Cowles

11/15/2012 03:52:50 am

Raven Gaiski

11/14/2012 04:00:47 am

I personally don't get distracted by technology, and I don't think smartphones, texting, video games, iPads, Facebook, Web surfing and television gets in the way of my learning. I still manage to get all my work done on time. I also personally work better when I am listening to music, so in a way it helps me. When I do my homework, I listen to music and text, and I still get all my work done and it doesn't take that long to do. So, I don't think technology gets in the way of my learning.

Kayla Martin

11/16/2012 03:09:27 am

I personally do not get distracted by technology. Simply because by working while listening to music helps me work better. Also because I cant be in a quiet place I have to have some type of background noise. I get my work done on time and still understand what im doing.

Are You Distracted By Technology?

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