… into the void.
… I recently had to ban [laptops] from my classroom at Denver Seminary because so many students were multi-tasking—shopping on line, checking email, and such like—while I was pouring out my soul lecturing. Now that they are illegal, students look at me and at each other more. Somehow, they still remember how to take notes by hand. However, one student admitted using his pocket device to look of the definition of a word I was using. If he could do that, he could also use text messaging and get diverted from the learning environment of the classroom.
Yes, some students will be responsible and only use the laptop to take notes on the template that I distribute or use them for genuine research related to the lecture. But given the pandemic mindset of multi-tasking, I cannot count on this kind of responsible behavior; so I banned them…
May 7th, 2009 at 7:34AM
[...] discussions around the idea of banning laptops in the classroom, and this week Tim Burke references Margaret Soltan’s pulling out a quote from an interview with Douglas Grooothuis, author of The Soul in Cyberspace. [...]
May 9th, 2009 at 4:05AM
interesting quote. what is margaret soltan’s position on laptops in the classroom? actually i am for banning lectures and going straight to apprenticeships.
May 10th, 2009 at 9:21AM
I remember hearing a bit from a professor. The story went that Gordon Brown (or some eminent politician) had a notebook during a speech, and said notebook was found to contain lots and lots of doodling. So then people yelped "he’s doodling?!?!" – but it turns out that the notebook belonged to Bill Gates (or some eminent genius), and that future studies suggested that doodling and other forms of multitasking actually keep some people focused.
May 14th, 2009 at 10:05PM
I would have dropped your course immediately. Plus, you run the risk of violating disability service contracts. Often students have reasons for using laptops that extend well beyond the desire to multi-task. If your lectures structured laptop use (now I’ll be lecturing, feel free to take notes on your computer vs. now we’re going to have a discussion, please close your computers and give your neighbors the attention you’d like when you have something to say). The problem is that you assume whatever you’re saying is more important than what they’re doing. They’re the buyers. Get over yourself and your course. Accept what you can’t change–you won’t always be the main thing on their minds. In fact, you’re probably not usually in the top 5. I had to learn that the hard way teaching at a community college.