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Should Colleges Ban Classroom Laptop Use?
theodp writes "If you were a college prof, think you could successfully compete for the attention of a lecture hall of Mac-packing students? CS student Carolyn blogs that a debate has sprung up on her campus about whether it is acceptable to use a laptop in class. And her school is hardly alone when it comes to struggling with appropriate in-classroom laptop use (vendor/corporate trainers would no doubt commiserate). The problem, she says, is that the OCD Facebookers aren't just devaluing their own education — there's a certain distraction factor to worry about. 'Students,' she suggests, 'should also communicate with each other more and tell their classmates when their computer use bothers them. I'll admit it, when I'm trying to pay attention to the lecture, even someone's screensaver in the row ahead of me can be a major distraction.'"
College is a choice, if students decide to squander it, banning laptops won't fix it.
;)
Besides, they'd just pull out their iPhones then.
If our elected representatives no longer represent us, do we still live in a Democracy?
It all depends on what is done in the classroom if a laptop (or other device) can be used or not.
During some laborations the use of a laptop can be good since it allows the students to have a location where to make notes and share them, but in other cases it may be a distraction instead. Don't forget the information overload factor - education is often about how to come to a conclusion yourself, not to draw on other people's conclusions.
If builders built buildings the way programmers wrote programs, then the first woodpecker would destroy civilization.
Yes, let's ban a useful tool because some people are too meek to ask others to stop doing distracting things with their laptops. [rolls eyes] When did people become so afraid? Is it really that hard to respectfully ask someone to change their behavior so as not to disturb others? Are we to ban a useful technology in the classroom because of a handful of bozos?
Cory Doctorow talking about cloud computing makes as much sense as George W Bush talking about electrical engineering.
I spent my undergraduate years at an American university and then moved to Europe for the remainder of my academic years. Imagine how happy I was to find that here lectures are not obligatory -- the exams are rigorous, the expectations clearly laid out in a syllabus, and you're welcome to study on your own and show up on the last day of the course and show your knowledge. While some fields may actually impart useful knowledge through lectures, in so many fields one can get the same information from books.
So why not just make lectures optional? The students who are likely to simply surf the net can be absent, while those who come will probably want to be there.
"[W]hen I'm trying to pay attention to the lecture, even someone's screensaver in the row ahead of me can be a major distraction."
How about having the ones with laptops sitting in the back or the ones distracted sitting in front (perhaps depending on whichever is the larger group).
Some of my favourite people are from th US; Vonnegut, Chomsky, Bill Hicks.
Should laptops be banned? Yes. But let's ban them because writing offers better recall and less personal distractions. Frankly the argument that someone else reading facebook is distracting is almost laughable. I fail to see how facebook or slashdot are any more distracting on someone else's laptop than for example a word document or OneNote.
But as a sidebar I just want to point out how lame "college" has become. It used to be for those serious about their education or the academic subjects, but now it is just another mandatory level of education with the same behavioural problems from those who really have no wish to be in attendance. The fact that we're talking about treating 19 to 24 year olds like small children should tell you how silly the situation is becoming.
Maybe. But on the other hand, taking notes may distract you from actually understanding the material that's being presented.
As a professor I can tell you that I don't care if you doodle or daydream. I don't honestly even care if you come to class. But if you do choose to come to my class I want you to at least conceal your inattentiveness, in the same way I would expect you not to take a phone call during a theatrical performance or even a movie I've paid to attend.
The problem with Internet-connected laptop users is that some are very bad at this. In the same way that it's possible to use a mobile phone in a non-distracting way, it's possible to use a laptop appropriately. But many don't. And it's distracting to see someone engrossed in a screen or vigorously typing away in a manner that's obviously disconnected from the course itself. Worse is obvious IMing between students in the same class, which is distracting and intimidating to students who ask questions or actually participate in the discussion.
I work hard to prepare my courses and get consistently high student reviews. But a lot of the energy in the class comes from the students, and distractions like this work like a control rod in an atomic pile. Believe me, everyone gets a worse experience.
It's particularly hard because I teach Master's students at a decent university. These are adults, mind you, people who are supposed to know these things. They're people who probably wouldn't take a phone call in a theatre, but for some reason they have no sense of etiquette when a laptop is involved. Worse, it's hard to scold adults and nobody else in the class wants to do it.
These aren't bad people. I understand the temptation of having a laptop in front of you, you just want to check that email. But it really does hurt the class experience. I don't want to ban laptops, and honestly I don't want to be a dick. But I wish to god I could disable Wifi at the AP. Unfortunately University IT controls it and they wouldn't be thrilled.