Modern technology has changed the face of college classrooms in recent years. Rather than relying on mere pen and paper to take notes in class, more and more students are utilizing the many capacities of their personal computers to keep up in the classroom.
While the potential benefits of laptop use during class are numerous - they allow for easy note taking and fact-checking during class - a recent study suggests the costs may outweigh the benefits for some students. With the lure of the Internet only a click away, many students find themselves checking email, perusing Facebook.com profiles or instant messaging during their classes.
According to the study, which was conducted at Winona State University in Minnesota, such indicators as information retention rates and course grades suggest students who bring laptops to class are less likely to be successful than students who do not.
The study followed students in two large lecture-style psychology courses. Students who regularly brought their laptops responded to a weekly survey regarding their use of class time. Their grades in the class were then compared with those of students who didn't bring laptops.
According to Political Science Lecturer David Rezvani, who teaches one lecture-style class at Tufts but has spent the majority of his teaching career at neighboring universities, there are both pros and cons to laptop use in class.
"At Harvard, they block Internet use in classroom buildings, so students cannot surf," Rezvani said. "I would notice that students who had brought laptops were always frantically taking down every word. They would even ask things like 'What was the first word of the second sentence of what you just said?' So that certainly could be an advantage for students."
But some students use their laptops for less productive purposes while in class.
According to the study, students who used laptops in class reported spending an average of 17 minutes within the 75 minute class on their computers doing something other than immediate class work. Furthermore, their grades at the end of the term were an average of five percent lower than those of students who relied on pen and paper.
In spite of such data, many at Tufts still believe in the utility of laptops in the classroom.
"I take better notes, [while using a laptop]," sophomore Jane Olszewski said, "which is good because I would end up typing them up anyway."
In other situations, however, students were not as attentive.
"You can tell whether or not a student, while using a laptop, is paying attention or not," Rezvani said, imitating the demeanors of zombie-like students versus attentive students. "You could be talking about genocide in Rwanda, and you can tell that they are not thinking about that."
Junior Jahn Sood said that, while note-taking is certainly improved with a laptop, the many temptations offered by a computer can be too much to resist.
"I am often distracted by other student's laptops," Sood said. "In one class, the entire front row was playing Snood. I was like 'I can either watch the professor, or watch the little colorful thing going by.' It's very visually stimulating."
Yet computers aren't the only things drawing students minds away from lectures.
"I find it distracting when students use laptops in class," said Tufts Professor of Mathematics Christoph Borgers in an e-mail, "almost as distracting as when students read newspapers in class."
Olszewski agrees, pointing out that there are just as many distractions available to students who do not use their laptops.
"People sometimes read the entire Daily in class," she said. "It's up to you; if you want to be distracted you will find a way."
