Laptops May Be the Ultimate Classroom Distraction 课堂保卫战：电脑靠边站

Nicole+Glass

The screen to my left displayed my classmates Facebook as she scrolled through hundreds of her friends photos. To my right， a student was shopping for dresses from the Lilly Pulitzer store.

The sound of fast-paced typing echoed throughout the class of 20—but no one was taking notes. Some were writing papers for other classes， while others stared blankly at websites they hoped would entertain them.

As I looked around， a hint of sadness struck me as I watched my professor tell stories that no one was listening to and jokes that no one laughed at. Did he even realize？ Everyone was glued to a laptop screen—online shopping， answering emails， chatting or finishing assignments for other classes.

It is difficult to find a college classroom that bans laptops—and their distracting presence adds even more challenge to the classroom learning environment.

A 2010 study conducted by a University of Colorado professor found that students who used laptops in class averaged 11% worse on tests than those who took notes the “old-fashioned way.” The professor， Diane Siebert， found that at the end of her semester-long class， students using laptops averaged a grade of 71%， “almost the same as the average for the students who didnt come at all，” she said.

While some professors might be aware of the endless distractions glaring from screens around their classroom， others have too much trust in their students. Most students who choose to distract themselves keep a Word document or an assigned reading minimized， in case the professor tries to sneak a peek at their screen.

But based on student behavior， its often easy to tell if they are surfing the web.

American University Professor G. Borden Flanagan described an incident in which a student was noticeably surfing the Internet. She nudged the person next to her， shifted the laptop and winked as she displayed a web page on the screen. After the student began laughing， Flanagan knew she was doing something else.

“It was mostly the smirk1） and the laughter and the swiveling2） of the laptop that made it so completely obvious，” he said.

But even the less obvious cases of distraction often dont go unnoticed. American University Professor W. Joseph Campbell has banned laptops in his classes for years after noticing students absentmindedly type away on their keyboards， occasionally cracking a smile at their inanimate3） computers and holding back from class discussions. Campbell says he can always tell when a student is distracted.

“The temptations are there，” he said. “Everyone would succumb to4） them， I think， if the laptops were open.”

When the class discussion slows or a professor provides his own notes of the lecture， its even easier to drift off.

“I use my laptop if the class is really boring，” American University student Ruben Musca told The Eagle5）. “I take notes， but when there is a lull in the class I buy stuff on e-Bay.”

Still， Campbell says his opposition to the devices is slowly crumbling as the world becomes more digitalized and laptop use becomes an expectation.

“The laptops are giving way to iPads and other tablet-like devices， and it could be that eventually theyll be so ubiquitous that it might be kind of funny to hear a professor ask to have them turned off，” he said.

Laptops allow students to more rapidly take notes， as well as pull up digitalized versions of their assigned readings. But Flanagan， who teaches political theory， says that even if students focus and use their laptops solely for taking notes， it can detract from6） individual thinking and active discussions.

Students rapidly typing up notes turn into “court reporters” that create， perhaps， an accurate account of the class without ever gaining a proper understanding of the material， said Flanagan. This issue is particularly pertinent7） in discussion and analysis based classes， like political theory or philosophy. Additionally， the ease of sharing computerized notes may further detract from the learning experience.

“When people take notes on the laptop， then there becomes sort of this black market in notes，” he said. “Students share notes. And the problem with that is that people feel less inclined to pay very close attention in class.”

Looking back at my four years in college， the classes in which I constantly used my laptop are mostly a blur—even those in which I used it solely for note taking. My most vivid academic memories come from classes that had a strict no-laptop rule. The professors I got to know and kept in contact with are only those I felt like interacting with in discussion-based classes. Hiding behind a screen is one of my biggest regrets. While laptops are convenient， part of the experience of learning is the challenge of trying to retain and understand information while knowing its not digitally stored.

“Its easy enough to argue that the more technology does for us cognitively， the less we have to do and the less we will do—and the softer our minds get，” Flanagan said. “The way technology is marketed to us is that it will make so much more possible， that well really be able to free ourselves from the menial8） tasks of cognitive work. But Im not sure I buy that. Technology will win in terms of accuracy， but having to piece things together9） yourself is just really crucial.”

我左边的电脑屏幕上显示的是我同学的Facebook个人主页，她正滚动浏览好友上传的几百张照片。我右边的同学正在莉莉·普利策（编注：美国时装品牌）的网站上选购裙子。

20人的教室里回响着快速敲击键盘的声音，但却没有一个人是在记笔记。一些人正在赶其他课程的论文，另一些人则木然地盯着网页，希望能从中找点乐子。

我环顾四周，眼看教授讲的故事没有人听，讲的笑话也没有人笑，我感到些许悲伤。他甚至都没意识到吗？所有人都盯着笔记本电脑屏幕——网购、回邮件、聊天或者写其他课程的作业。

很难发现哪个大学课堂禁止使用笔记本电脑，但笔记本电脑的存在会使学生分心，这给课堂学习环境增加了更多挑战。

科罗拉多大学的一位教授在2010年进行的一项研究发现，在课堂上用笔记本电脑的学生比用“老式方法”记笔记的学生在考试中的平均成绩要低11%。这位教授名为戴安娜·西伯特，她发现在她一个学期的课程结束时，使用笔记本电脑的学生的平均成绩是71%。“这几乎和根本不来上课的学生的平均成绩一样。”她说。

有些教授可能意识到了教室中的电脑屏幕所散发出的无尽诱惑，但其他教授则过于相信他们的学生了。大多数想用电脑消遣一下的学生都会把一个Word文档或是一篇指定的阅读材料最小化，以防教授试图偷看一眼他们的屏幕。

但是，根据学生的行为举止，教授通常很容易判断学生是否在上网冲浪。

美利坚大学教授G·博登·弗拉纳根讲述了学生明显在上网冲浪的一个例子。那个学生用手肘轻推了一下旁边的同学，转动电脑屏幕，然后一边展示屏幕上的网页一边使眼色。那个同学大笑了起来，弗拉纳根就意识到她在做与课堂无关的事。

“主要是傻笑、大笑以及旋转电脑的动作让事情太明显了。”弗拉纳根说。

但即便是一些不那么明显的分心通常也逃不过教授的法眼。美利坚大学教授W·约瑟夫·坎贝尔多年来一直禁止学生在他的课上使用笔记本电脑。此前，他曾发现学生心不在焉地用键盘打字，偶尔还对着他们那没有生命的电脑咧着嘴笑，对课堂讨论也不积极。坎贝尔说学生分心时他总能看出来。

“诱惑就在那里，”他说，“我觉得只要电脑开着，每个人都会忍不住。”

在课堂讨论节奏放缓或者教授提供讲义的情况下，学生更容易走神。

“如果课堂内容很无聊，我就会用笔记本电脑，”美利坚大学学生鲁宾·穆斯卡在接受《鹰报》采访时说，“我会用它记笔记，但在课堂间歇时也会在e-Bay上购物。”

尽管如此，坎贝尔说他的笔记本电脑禁令渐渐行不通了，因为世界变得更加数字化，使用笔记本电脑成为理所应当的事。

“笔记本电脑正在被iPad和其他平板类设备所取代。最终，这些电子设备可能会变得无处不在。如果哪个教授要求关闭电子设备，那可能会让人觉得有些可笑。”他说。

笔记本电脑使学生记笔记更快，也使他们可以看电子版的指定阅读材料。但是教政治理论课的弗拉纳根却说即便学生专心听讲，使用笔记本电脑只是为了记笔记，那也会影响他们进行独立思考和积极参与课堂讨论。

弗拉纳根说，快速打字记笔记的学生变成了“法院书记员”，他们也许把课堂内容记录得一字不差，但是根本没有正确理解这些材料。这个问题与政治理论课和哲学课这类以讨论和分析为主的课程尤其相关。此外，用电脑做的笔记很容易分享，这可能会让学习效果再打折扣。

“学生用笔记本电脑记笔记会形成一种‘笔记黑市，”弗拉纳根说，“他们会互相分享笔记，但问题是这样一来，他们上课时就不那么愿意认真听讲了。”

回想我的四年大学时光，我对课上经常使用笔记本电脑的课程的印象已经基本模糊了——即便在有些课上笔记本电脑只是用来记笔记。而我最清晰的学习记忆来自那些严禁使用笔记本电脑的课程。我了解并保持联络的教授都是那些在以讨论为主的课堂上我喜欢与之互动的教授。把脸藏在电脑屏幕的后面是我最后悔的事情之一。笔记本电脑的确很方便，但是在知道信息未经电子存储的情况下努力记忆、理解信息，这种挑战正是学习经历的一部分。

“显然，技术在我们的认知过程中做得越多，我们需要做的就越少，我们也将做得越少——我们的头脑就会越不灵光，”弗拉纳根说，“人们在向我们推销技术时说它可以让更多事情成为可能，可以做到把我们从乏味的认知活动中真正解脱出来，但是我不确定我认同这一点。技术在准确性上会更胜一筹，但是自己通过拼凑零散的信息把事物弄清楚真的很重要。”

1. smirk [sm??（r）k] n. 傻笑

2. swivel [?sw?v（?）l] vt. 使旋转

3. inanimate [?n??n?m?t] adj. 无生命的

4. succumb to：屈从；让步

5. The Eagle：《鹰报》，美国得克萨斯州的一份报纸，创办于1889年。

6. detract from：有损于，贬低

7. pertinent [?p??（r）t?n?nt] adj. 相关的，贴切的

8. menial [?mi?ni?l] adj. （工作、职业）不体面的；乏味的

9. piece together：拼凑信息以弄清（真相）