Multi Tasking

Educators use technology in the classroom in hopes of improving the academic

performance of students. However, using technologies can be seen as distracting
where students have a difficult time juggling between learning the material of the
lesson and trying to maneuver around having to use technology. According to
research, when students have access to laptops in the classroom, they are often
juggling with having to multi-task, which reduces their academic performance
(Fried, 2008).
That being said, having a balance between students using technology and learning
new material wouldn’t lead to a successful learning experience. Therefore, it would
probably be better for educators to use technology throughout materials that
students are familiar with.
The use of personal devices and technologies causes disadvantages in classrooms.
Students who use their phones, iPads, and computers in class make their academic
performance worse. If students do not go on their phones in class, they are more
likely to learn the information and perform better in class. They will have better
grades. Outside of the classroom, when students are doing assignments or
studying, they will stop and check their phones multiple times. They think they can
also watch tv or do other things on their devices while doing school work
but multitasking, which is doing various things at once, makes it much harder to
focus. Because they are spending time on these devices, it takes them much longer
to do their work. It also takes much longer for studying while it also reduces the
likelihood of remembering the information. The results of this could be a lower
grade on the assignment or a quiz/test. A lower GPA and academic performance
can be caused by social media usage, texting, playing games, etc. Those are some
things that students will do on their personal devices and technologies that have
negatively impacted students’ learning abilities and academic performance

A number of academic staff members noted that the use of personal laptops in
class (during lectures and tutorials when access to computers was not required)
were increasing and causing disruption to the teaching and learning process. Apart
from students on personal laptops, there were others that were using their mobile
phones and smart phones to send and receive text messages, emails, surfing the
Internet and "checking". "Checking" has a new meaning for those concerned about
the unbridled introduction of new cognitively-penetrating technology; checking is
a new phenomenon for those that cannot seem to endure a day without repeated
and regular access to mobile connectivity devices. Checking is checking for text
messages, checking Facebook updates, checking emails, checking Twitter,
checking web sites, and checking whether my friends are checking me. This
happens on a regular basis, and can typically be four or more times in one hour. A
recent survey in the US indicates that young person’s now send or receive as many
as 107 texts a day as compared to older adults (around 40). These are startling facts
about modern behaviour and its invasion into the classroom should be carefully
monitored. Although many students own a laptop, during the semester, some
academic staff members received complaints from students (non-laptop users
during lectures) that the use of laptops by other students during lectures was
distracting them from paying attention to what was being taught. Other students
complained that they were being interrupted by those technology users who were
not paying attention and who did not know what was going on in class, what to do
next, and how to do it. If the students cared and responded by trying to assist those
who were behind, then, they themselves became retarded in their work. Other
anecdotal evidence received from students for technology disruptions in the
classroom included mobile phones ringing, portable media players playing loud
music, network computer games being played in class amongst half a dozen
students and being followed and cheered by others.

Informal discussions in the staff room have revealed that the problems were
common amongst the cohort of first timers (students attending courses at the
polytechnic for the first time), and a few other students in other courses at higher
levels. An email was sent by the author of this paper requesting such information,
and the email was titled: "What Else Do Students Do In Your Class? (apart from
learning what you are teaching)". The responses from colleagues were enough to
seriously consider further investigations. There were instances during lectures
when I had to tell students that their tapping/typing on the keyboards were
disturbing and annoying me. The author tried using LanSchool to block access to
lab computers, but the students would disconnect the network cables or switch onto
their laptops and mobile phones/smart phones. Educators are discovering that
students are more interested in online resources, such as Facebook, game sites,
chat, and YouTube, than classroom lectures and textbook chapters about computer
science and other subjects. So, does one spend one's 1 or 2 hour teaching slot to
teach, or "police" the students by monitoring their activities and then stop teaching
to tell them what to do (i.e., what they should have bending in the first instance)?
The author of this research decided that he would teach, and those who want to
learn will, as the learning outcomes from the course prescription needed to be
completed by the end of the semester. What would be the outcome in terms of
grades of the students distracted by ICT devices at the end of the semester was
something that we wanted to find out. How does an instructor compete with
tablets, cell phones, netbooks, and text messaging? How do we manage the
distractive equalities of technology in schools?

MULTITASKING BEHAVIOR Compounding the issue of the ever-present cell

phone, many people today engage in multitasking. The word “multitasking”
originated in 1966 in computing, to reference the technique whereby an operating
system could perform several jobs concurrently with one processor4 . Today the
term multitasking also refers to people who perform two or more activities
simultaneously. Computers were designed for multitasking; however, it appears
that people were not. Even so, many people today seem dissatisfied with doing one
thing at a time. There many things potentially contributing to this phenomenon.
One factor is an inability to concentrate. Physiological factors such as insufficient
sleep, anxiety, and depressive disorders can potentially lead to an inability to
concentrate. Thinking becomes fuzzy when one is sleep deprived. Likewise, stress
can lead to feelings of anxiety or depression. Diagnoses of Attention Deficit
Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) are also on the rise. According to the Center for
Disease Control, “approximately 11% of children 4-17 years of age (6.4 million)
have been diagnosed with ADHD as of 2011.”5 People in their 30’s, who have not
previously been diagnosed, are also being diagnosed with ADHD. Are people
having trouble concentrating because of the ADHD, or is technology use to blame
for the ADHD?

There are also many negative effects on student learning. Use of technology in
class requires multitasking, which in addition to other effects, dulls a student’s
interest in learning (Kulesza et al. (2010). Use of technology affects one’s ability to
pay attention and comprehend the material, leading to lower test scores and grades
(Bugeja, 2007; Fried, 2008; Lepp, Barkley, and Karpinski, 2014; Truman, 2005).
Hembrooke and Gay (2003) had mixed findings. They found that students using
laptops performed worse when tested for memory of lecture content, and those
students performing multiple tasks performed significantly poorer. However, they
also found that as students become more experienced at browsing, their grades are
not as negatively affected (Hembrooke and Gay, 2003). Distractions are causing
students to have skill deficits in reading, writing, and cognition (Tesch, Coelho,
and Drozdenko, 2011). Of course, technology is not the only distraction. Being ill,
sleepy, too hot/cold, an instructor who is difficult to understand, and others’
hygiene are also major distractors (Tesch et al., 2011).

The use of personal devices and technologies has negatively impacted students’
learning abilities and academic performance while becoming a distraction for
themselves and others around them. Students are constantly on their phones and
not paying attention in class. They are also not using their computers the way they
are supposed to, like taking notes or doing assignments. Students are no longer
learning like they used to because of these distractions. They are also having a
more challenging time learning because of the ability to look things up just to
finish assignments instead of trying to learn and figure it out.

LITERATURE REVIEW While technology has become increasingly more popular

in classrooms, there is a concern that students are relying too heavily on
technology. While technology can be a great tool, are students prepared to problem
solve technology related issues? With the use of technology, some teachers are
adopting the flipped classroom approach. This allows students to study the material
at home and come to school to engage in more discussions, exercises, and
activities. According to Song and Kapur (2017), “few studies have reported how to
develop students’ problem solving skills and enhance their conceptual
understanding in flipped classroom in mathematics inquiry” (p. 293). While in this
setting, students are learning more on their own, they are missing out on some of
that lecture time that can spark deep conversation on problems. This article looks
at the different benefits and concerns of a flipped classroom. Fisher, et al. (2014)
discuss how classrooms are turning to technology for teaching and learning, and
how teacher’s roles have changed. The teacher becomes the facilitator, who takes
the students on their learning journey, learning with them instead of ‘teaching’
them. Students needs to make judgements about and be able to calculate the value
of the content they gather. Learners are also self-assessing using technology. This
helps to “move learners from being the consumers of information to being
producers of it” (p. 11).