While technology offers many resources that facilitate the learning process, it can equally slow it down. We’ve all been there: there’s an assignment due through blackboard that you didn’t get a chance to read for, what do you do? Open up Google and pray that you can find the answers.
Having the ability to find answers online reinforces students’ procrastination and laziness. There seems to be no purpose in reading and staying caught up when one can get an A on the assignment by simply taking a few seconds to search on Google.
The rise of the use of technology has certainly affected the credibility of the grading system. If you take into consideration the school system prior to having computers and search engines, earning an A back then meant more than earning an A today. Nowadays students can achieve A’s for online quizzes and assignments by putting in minimal effort. This has certainly changed the way that grades and GPAs are interpreted.
A study done by professors from Princeton University and UCLA analyzes the difference between taking notes by hand or by computer. Typing notes means that you are able to take them faster and verbatim, but your brain does not process them.
When handwriting notes, students need to be more selective. This requires the brain to process the information since you are summarizing, paraphrasing and relating concepts to each other while taking notes. It can be argued that typing notes down quickly, word for word, is the same as if the information went into one ear and out the other.
Learning on computers can also get distracting if one does not have enough discipline. Facebook, Reddit, YouTube and Imgur are a few of the many websites that students get lost browsing for hours. You could decide to take a quick five-minute study break and before you know it, you’ve spent hours getting lost in random threads or looking at memes.
Although the internet provides access to one of the world’s largest information sources, the credibility of the information can vary greatly from source to source. Since the publication of materials on some websites are not regulated, students can be exposed to incorrect or biased information. Students need to proceed with caution if using internet resources to learn.
To put it this way, too much of the good can be bad. Computers can give students a huge leg up in their studies, but they can also hinder their learning process and efficiency. The younger generations may face issues due to their dependency on technology to help them succeed in school.
