If ever you are in the home where a teenager resides there is bound to be this type of conversation, well not conversation really,because there is usually no audible response. A snippet goes like this:
"How could you study in such noise? turn off the T.V !"
"And you can't hear me, why you always have to be wearing earphones?
Of course , this is happening while the youngster is researching on the Internet. I do not have to mention that the ubiquitous cellphone is also nearby.
The impression we get, is that teenagers are concerned that they'll miss out on something important, so they stay connected all the time.Inspite of a feeling of being able to cope, studies have shown that there is a level of distraction that is evident academically and socially.
A study in the U.S revealed that 46% of teenagers send texts while driving.We know the consequences of that! Researchers also found that students assumed that distraction had no effect on their academic performance, what they concluded was, although they were able to accomplish academic tasks, they required more time to achieve the same level of performance on those tasks.
So when our "digital natives",(Prensky,2001) wired to the hilt,feel they are in control of the pervasive communication media, they are in fact controlled by it.
Reference:
Glasser, U. & Palfrey, J. Mastering multitasking.Educational Leadership. Vol 66,6.
15-19.
Prensky,M. (2001). Digital Natives Digital Immigrants. On the Horizon.9,5. 1-2.
It's a negative of technology Mary. I call it the illusion. That children seem to think that they can multi-task and indeed they are multi-tasking but to what ends?
ReplyDeleteThe mediocre performance that we are getting out of schools can it be because of the many distractions?Students can access everything, use any technological device that comes at them fast and furious - have you observed how often the technlogy upgrades, changes? It seems every month we hear about a new device or an improvement to an existing one. These gadgets excite and intrigue the younger generation who just use it becuase they can.
Our role, or rather challenge, as educators in this technological age is to show these tech-savvy students how to use the gadgets with which they intereact on a daily basis as literacy tools.
Hi Mary
ReplyDeleteThis generation believe that they can do so many things at the same time...so they listen to music via headphones, watch TV, IM, Text, Facebook all whist they are doing home assignments...hmmmm. I was listening to a BBC commentary on this fad of "Multi tasking" he simply said it can not be done as we can only do/complete one task at a time and I tend to agree with him. The child who fools himself or herself into believing that he can do all this and do it well is doing just that fooling himself. We the teachers see the mess that they make.So for me there can be no multi tasking if there is to be a good job.
Mary this is a great post. Sometime this week, I was looking at a picture of a girl listening to music and using her cell phone, while on her laptop and the idea of "multitasking"came to mind.It is a wonder how these youngsters do it. I know that women does multitasking a lot to complete their house chores. Now, I'm curious who does it more with the technology, boys or girls?
ReplyDeleteI read some of Prensky (2001) where non-IT-literate individuals were described as being burdened with an accent, and as non-native speakers of a language, struggling to survive in a strange new world. These digital natives know the language of technology and can converse fluently. It’s interesting that in-spite of thinking that we are so literate, we are indeed illiterate. This is a daunting fact that we adults now have to deal with everyday.
ReplyDeleteMany of us still need to wake up and see the connectivity around us.
This is an interesting blog since while I am reading it my cellphone is nearby and the telvision is on! I really cannot study in complete silence all the time the silence is sometimes deafening. I do not feel that all the time music or the television being on that one is not fully engaged in their work, its just that sometimes that little distraction keeps me up.
ReplyDeleteDon't get me wrong it may be hypocritical but I still would not encourage this 'multi-tasking' but I will be lenient since I know my own habits.