To me, this is terrifying. Sure, I'm guilty of multitasking, and it even makes me feel excited and productive a lot of the time. But I can't help but think that it is totally unnatural for our brains to be "on" all the time, thinking about 5 different things at once. In fact, multitasking isn't even the worst, but it's not what we're really doing most of the time. The big problem is "continuous partial attention." The PBS website (under FAQ) describes the difference between the two phenomena this way: "When we're multitasking, we have a specific purpose for each task, and we are trying to do each task well. We shift between tasks, and that sometimes slows down our productivity. But when we're in continuous partial attention, we're scanning multiple dimensions of our environment constantly. We aren't switching back and forth between activities; we're doing lots of things all at the same time."
I think this sort of constant cognitive motion is destructive to our being. I read that the more time we spend multitasking, the less down time our brains have, which stimulates creative thinking. The down time is the key - not only for relaxation, but also for improving our cognitive processes- and it seems like culturally we're moving further and further from that concept and closer to a constantly-on way of being. This has serious implications for teaching and learning since creativity are integral to critical thinking skills and also simply being an interesting person!
I'm going to get off the computer now and go sit in the grass.
4 comments:
I watched this video as well and I was appalled by the way the students reacted when asked about multitasking. Sure, I am guilty of multitasking during class at times, but notice I say "guilty." Although I do text during class sometimes, I still can admit that it is something I should not be doing. I was shocked that the students in the video believe that it is a good thing to go on Facebook or text during class. Not only does it take your focus off of what is being talked about in class, but it is downright rude to the professor. I think our generation has to stop thinking about being "on" all the time and start focusing on common courtesy. While someone is talking, whether it be a professor, a colleague, or a friend, you are supposed to give them your full attention. Our generation seems to think that it is acceptable to half-listen, while texting someone else or checking their e-mail. I truly think that if technology continues like this, no one is going to be able to talk to each other face to face anymore, which I believe we talked about in class.
It will be a big challenge for all of you and the technology may help with monitoring and planning may help a bit too but sometimes they just need to be unplugged.
Love the title. In boy scouts it was "OOh ahh shiny!" It was a poke at the boys who were so easily distracted. How many times have we already heard "Keep them on task"? I see the texting behavior in all of my classes. I was amazed at the individual who sat texting through PChem 2 (Quantum chemistry). The other day I watched a young lady task-switch between facebook and texting during a lecture. Seriously, what is so important on facebook that it can't wait 30 minutes? It seems like people younger than me are hooked on stimulation, like a drug. "Feed the Need."
It's just crazy how hardcore some kids are about multitasking. I was appalled by the students in this video. They HAVE to multitask to stay on task, to pay attention. But are they actually paying attention? Not really. Now, how do we work with this as future teachers...?
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