George Bradford's List: Multitasking and Learning

"Abstract

Recently, a debate has begun over whether in-class laptops aid or hinder learning. While some research demonstrates that laptops can be an important learning tool, anecdotal evidence suggests more and more faculty are banning laptops from their classrooms because of perceptions that they distract students and detract from learning. The current research examines the nature of in-class laptop use in a large lecture course and how that use is related to student learning. Students completed weekly surveys of attendance, laptop use, and aspects of the classroom environment. Results showed that students who used laptops in class spent considerable time multitasking and that the laptop use posed a significant distraction to both users and fellow students. Most importantly, the level of laptop use was negatively related to several measures of student learning, including self-reported understanding of course material and overall course performance. The practical implications of these findings are discussed.

Keywords:
Laptop use; Classroom teaching; Post-secondary education; Teaching/Learning strategies"

Abstract


The School of Engineering and Computing (SEC) at Glasgow Caledonian University (GCU), as with many other institutions involved in the teaching of engineering, has an increasingly diverse student body. In order to support the different learning styles and modes of attendance of these students a number of technologies and strategies have been applied to improve the choice and flexibility of access to the learning resources. This paper summarises the work done by some members of the Computer and Engineering Educational Research group in the SEC at GCU over recent times, and evaluates these methods and approaches to using technology to promote personalised learning. These mechanisms address in a particularly practical manner the use of audio and video lecture capture in pilot projects to create repositories of targeted learning resources which are accessible on a wide range of platforms in a range of formats. These resources are designed to be integral to the teaching plan and are intended to enhance the reflective processes to aid the understanding, embedding and retention of the presented information. The results obtained from these activities are discussed and based on these results the plans for the further developments of the work are presented.

In 1999, The SCONUL Working Group on Information Literacy published Information skills in higher education: a SCONUL position paper (SCONUL, 1999), introducing the Seven Pillars of Information Skills model. Since then, the model has been adopted by librarians and teachers around the world as a means of helping them to deliver information skills to their learners.

However, in 2011 we live in a very different information world and while the basic principles underpinning the original Seven Pillars model remain valid, it was felt that the model needed to be updated and expanded to reflect more clearly the range of different terminologies and concepts which we now understand as "Information Literacy".

In order for the model to be relevant to different user communities and ages, the new model is presented as a generic "core" model for Higher Education, to which a series of "lenses", representing the different groups of learners, can be applied.

At publication (April 2011), only the Core Model and the Research Lens are available. We hope that teachers and librarians representing other learner groups will participate in the development of other lenses.

There are a large number of Information Literacy, Research, or Information Problem Solving models available for teachers to use with pupils. Below is a selection of some of them.

"Online learning is reaching a more mature stage in development and evaluation
in which comparative research is being replaced by research explaining learning
effectiveness and theory development. Papers submitted to this track should
reflect this with a focus on theory and/or research-based approaches to the
design and delivery of online or blended learning.



Proposals submitted to this track might consider, for example: applications
of learning theory to the design of online learning environments; quantitative
and qualitative research on the effects of particular aspects of course design
on student learning; the changing nature of learning online; innovative design
of online courses or course activities to support collaboration and community;
ways of assessing student learning in online courses; creating affective
outcomes toward development of the whole person; diversity perspective and
cross-cultural issues; and faculty approaches to promoting learning online."

Details and Instructions for submitting a White Paper


1.Length. The white paper should be 8-12 pages double spaced (plus References).
2.Style.
a.Front load the paper. The purpose should be clearly stated upfront, followed by a brief explanation of significance.
b.Do not submit Literature Reviews nor research reports; these are not usually included, but a list of suggested sources as an appendix is appropriate.
c.Use a less formal writing style than typical research papers. Narrative and personal anecdote may be integrated to enhance the paper’s tone.
d.Provide concrete examples, illustrations, and other visuals when possible.
e.Use headings for clarity.
f.Avoid jargon, overly technical language, and inflated wording.
g.Use APA unless another style is most appropriate.
3.Manuscript format.
a.Title page with authors’ names, affiliation, and date of submission
b.Abstract
c.Author’s bio (no more than 300 words)
d.Body of paper without identification other than article title on any page
e.References
f.Appendixes

EDUCAUSE is an international, nonprofit, professional association for managers and users of information resources on college and university campuses. EDUCAUSE Quarterly (EQ) is a practitioner's journal of EDUCAUSE, published online only. The content of EQ relates to practical applications of information resources (including technology, services, and information) in higher education, ranging from administrative, academic, library, and social computing to multimedia, telecommunications, and networking.

Potential articles are reviewed by the EQ Editor and EQ Reviewers. The evaluation process usually takes from two to three weeks; author revision and the editorial production cycle may take several months. EQ authors receive full editorial support and gain valuable exposure and recognition in a very visible professional forum. View author testimonials. Higher education IT professionals, corporate representatives, and faculty may submit unsolicited proposals, multimedia materials, and articles for publication consideration in EQ. Authors do not need to be EDUCAUSE members.

Send submissions to eqeditor@educause.edu.

To develop effective information literacy instruction for distance education students, academic librarians must consider instructional design issues, including important factors in the selection of distance education technologies, the incorporation of active learning, and the assessment of learning to improve instruction.