Here are three more quotes from the article that got me thinking...
"In Plato’s Phaedrus, Socrates bemoaned the development of writing. He feared that, as people came to rely on the written word as a substitute for the knowledge they used to carry inside their heads, they would, in the words of one of the dialogue’s characters, 'cease to exercise their memory and become forgetful.'...Socrates wasn’t wrong—the new technology did often have the effects he feared—but he was shortsighted. He couldn’t foresee the many ways that writing and reading would serve to spread information, spur fresh ideas, and expand human knowledge (if not wisdom)."
"The arrival of Gutenberg’s printing press, in the 15th century, set off another round of teeth gnashing. The Italian humanist Hieronimo Squarciafico worried that the easy availability of books would lead to intellectual laziness, making men 'less studious' and weakening their minds...'Most of the arguments made against the printing press were correct, even prescient.' But, again, the doomsayers were unable to imagine the myriad blessings that the printed word would deliver."
"Perhaps those who dismiss critics of the Internet as Luddites or nostalgists will be proved correct, and from our hyperactive, data-stoked minds will spring a golden age of intellectual discovery and universal wisdom."
Maybe...but I don't know. For some reason this section of the article made me think of my first semester back in college after several years of being away. I attended college, the first time, between 1993 and 1998. We barely even had email, the World Wide Web was just getting started, only well-to-do business types had cell phones (I knew exactly 1 person who had one!) and laptops were like $3,000 and therefore not at all common among the student population. So when we went to large lecture-like classes we had little other choice than to actually listen to the lecturer. Now I'm sure there were people who only looked like they were listening and were really thinking about something else, but it was decidedly less difficult to keep your mind from wandering than the situation I encountered in 2005 when I stepped foot in my first lecture hall of the 21st century. Laptops were everywhere, and I couldn't find a single student using theirs to take notes on the lecture. What I could find were countless Facebook screens, students playing online poker, students reading and typing emails, and students shopping online. And many of them were doing this one-handed while texting under the table with the other. Only about half the students even pretended to be paying attention to the lecture while doing these things. I can only imagine they did the same "multi-tasking" while working on their homework and studying for exams. So if they are not engaging in the lecture, not engaging in their homework, skimming and hopping across texts, and multi-tasking all the while, when does the deep learning happen?
I know that there are wonderful things technology can bring to education...but wow..it's going to be hard for many students to ever pull themselves out of the time-wasting, attention draining, cyber-mire to even notice them.
"So if they are not engaging in the lecture, not engaging in their homework, skimming and hopping across texts, and multi-tasking all the while, when does the deep learning happen?"
ReplyDeleteMy question is "how are they passing"? And if they are passing, who is to blame?
I agree with Mr. S. If I were that instructor, I would probably ask myself how valuable my lecture was. If students can pass without paying a whit of attention to me, maybe what I'm delivering is not quite so vital as I think it is.
ReplyDeleteWow...I can't believe you guys are letting the students off the hook like that. There is a difference between passing and deep learning...I could go on and on about how course expectations need to be ratcheted up, don't get me wrong...but blaming the instructor seems like a cop out to me...something I'd expect the students on Facebook to say, but not an excuse for not (making an attempt)at engaging with the lecture.
ReplyDeleteI don't know...I tend to agree with Mr. S and Lyasguy. I can understand that (especially at a large university) large class sizes make anything other than a lecture nearly impossible. But isn't there a way to integrate the technology students are using into your lecture? I'd be mortified as a professor to learn that this was happening...
ReplyDeleteDing! Ding! DIng! Students have learned how to play the game of school. (Thank you, curriculum class for that line.) In other words, students have learned how to do just enough. I think some of them are sucked in to all the opportunities that surround them. The second they become the least bit bored they check their phone or close their notes and check facebook. For some students, I truly think it is like a compulsion. Also, I feel many students have the need to feel entertained all the time. I would say that the responsibility lies with both the teacher and students.
ReplyDeleteI agree with Beth in that it is both the responsibility of the teacher and students. From my perspective, students often seem to want to be entertained and anything that falls short of that frequently leads to the use of email, Facebook, etc. during class. I understand why because I also like to be connected and only resist the urge because of my strong sense of professionalism (even when I am highly interested in what the speaker has to say). If students do not have that same sense of professionalism they are much more likely to use technology at inappropriate times. Thus, it is the role of the instructor to encourage professionalism and perhaps even implement consequences for a lack of it.
ReplyDelete