How Do I Address Use of Electronic Devices in the Classroom?

Meg Gorzycki,

Pedagogical Concerns

Laptops, iPhones, and other electronic devices are commonplace in the college classroom, and present instructors and students with both the possibility of enhancing learning through the use of technology, and the possibility of diminished learning by way of distraction.

Faculty and students have different perceptions regarding the use of electronic devices in the classroom. Whereas students are generally more accepting of the use of electronic devices, faculty tend to be less accepting.[i] Studies also find that students’ academic performance decreases when they are interrupted by cell phone use and using other electronic devices to engage their attention on matters other than the lesson. [ii][iii][iv][v]

There are ways to use electronic devices to enhance learning, as instruments such as mobile phones and laptops may be used to retrieve information from the Internet and special applications may be used for various tasks.[vi] Mobile devices have been found to be helpful in engaging students and especially useful in large classes.[vii][viii][ix]

Pedagogical Challenges

Students and instructors enter the classroom with a set of assumptions and expectations about what is to be learned, how the course should be taught, student responsibilities, and how students’ work should be assessed. Addressing these assumptions and expectations at the beginning of a semester is thus the first step in creating a classroom environment wherein the use of electronic devices is appropriate and not injurious to learning. In particular, it may be helpful to address the following in the syllabus and in class discussion.

Orientation to Learning. Student engagement does not preclude the use of electronic devices, but requires their effective and appropriate use. Many students assume that college level course work is a matter of absorbing and reporting information. While a substantial aspect of courses may concern itself with memorizing and recalling declarative knowledge, the process cannot be effectively executed when attention is drawn away from information. Distractions readily lead to the brain’s inability to effectively code memories. An orientation to the course is an opportunity to explicitly inform students that the classroom is a unique learning environment in which studentshave the benefit of expert facilitation and collaboration with their peers. Further, to maximize learning, students need to devote their full attention to the lesson and direct their thoughts towards activities such as:

  1. Mentally paraphrasing lectures
  2. Thinking about the meaning of what is taught
  3. Recording notes and their own responses to material and ideas
  4. Asking questions for clarification or further information
  5. Listening attentively to the insights of others and thinking about them

The orientation is an opportunity to help students understand the difference between the novice learner and the expert. Fundamental to the difference is the responsibility the expert is willing to assume for his or her own learning, and the willingness to refrain from behaviors that interfere with other students’ learning.

  1. Commitment to Engagement. Students believe that they can be successful in college courses and still use electronic devices inappropriately in class because this is their experience. Many students have been taught by instructors who have low expectations for student engagement, and by instructors who will accommodate those who do not earn the grades they desire.

Policies regarding the use of electronic devices in the classroom are often not enough to dissuade students from use. Course design itself, therefore, is a critical element in getting students to focus on the lesson. Student engagement in the learning process both inside and outside the classroom immerses students in activity that is immediately relevant to learning. Engaging activities often prompt students to:

  • Perform cognitive tasks, such as analyze, synthesis, diagram, summarize, and evaluate
  • Develop and complete projects or compositions
  • Share thoughts, experiences, and findings
  • Conduct research
  • Debate, explain or discuss
  • Complete lab assignments

The purpose of student engagement is not only to sustain students’ attention the material, but to prompt and facilitate cognitive activity in which they must generate ideas and inquiries of their own, and thus deepen their understanding and reinforce their memories.

[i]Baker, W. M., Lusk, E. J., & Neuhauser, K. L. (2012). On the use of cell phones and other electronic devices in the classroom: Evidence from a survey of faculty and students. Journal of Education for Business, 87(5), 275-289.

[ii]End, C. M., Worthman, S., Mathews, M. B., & Wetterau, K. (2009). Costly cell phones: The impact of cell phone rings on academic performance. Teaching of Psychology, 37(1), 55-57.

[iii] Kraushaar, J.M. & Novak, D. C. (2010). Examining the effects of student multitasking with laptops during the lecture. Journal of Information Systems Education, 21(2), 241-251.

[iv] Rosen, C. (2008). The myth of multitasking. The New Atlantis, spring, 105-110.

[v]Duncan, D. K., Hoekstra, A. R., & Wilcox, B. R. (2012). Digital devices, distraction, and student performance: Does in-class cell phone use reduce learning. Astronomy education review, 11(1), 1-4.

[vi]Williams, A. J., & Pence, H. E. (2011). Smart phones, a powerful tool in the chemistry classroom. Journal of Chemical Education, 88(6), 683-686.

[vii]Dunn, P. K., Richardson, A., Oprescu, F., & McDonald, C. (2013). Mobile-phone-based classroom response systems: Students’ perceptions of engagement and learning in a large undergraduate course. International Journal of Mathematical Education in Science and Technology, 44(8), 1160-1174.

[viii]Junco, R., Heiberger, G., & Loken, E. (2011). The effect of Twitter on college student engagement and grades. Journal of computer assisted learning, 27(2), 119-132.

[ix]Lampe, C., Wohn, D. Y., Vitak, J., Ellison, N. B., & Wash, R. (2011). Student use of Facebook for organizing collaborative classroom activities. International Journal of Computer-Supported Collaborative Learning, 6(3), 329-347.