Effects Of A Study Environment With Modern Distractions On Learning
Introduction
A study environment is defined as the surrounding of the learner when he/she is carrying out private studies or in class when the teacher is delivering a lesson. Most researchers define an appropriate study environment as one which is void of noise or all forms of distraction. In the present day study environment, there are quite a number of distractions and they have adverse effects of the general studies of the learner. Modern distractions include gadgets such as mobile phones, Ipods and the Internet. These sources of distraction often lead to reduced concentration, declining capacity to perceive concepts as well as lack of interest in learning.
Discussion
The effect of cellular phones on learning
Cell phones are portable meaning that students usually commute form place to place with them and classrooms are no exceptions. Sometimes a learner could be anticipating a call from a friend or siblings they will pay more attention to the incoming call than to anything else. Sometimes such anticipations makes learners fail to contribute during discussions or in class as they are more interested in when the call will come through than what in what is being discussed. Eventually when the call comes through, the ring tone may be loud enough to cause excessive distractions to other students who may be in class or in the vicinity (Campbell, 2006). Teachers who handle classrooms where students bring their cellular phones usually get irritated when they discover that a certain student is not paying attention to the lesson because they are anticipating a call. Similarly, other students may be using their cellular phones to listen to music while in class such that they are less concerned with the lesson content.
This crease a major distraction not only to that particular student but to the entire class as some of the students may end up admiring or staring at the one who is listening to the music Daniels, (2007).Cell phones also cause a certain degree of distraction during private studies of the student especially when they are surfing the internet at the same time. Although, the internet is as source of vital information which could be relevant to their studies, it becomes distractive when the learner is tempted to explore some obscene sites. Occasionally, some learners will opt to play games over a short break of their studies and this may prove to be quite addictive such that reverting back to their studies becomes a challenge. Hence the games in this case present a bigger distraction instead of being a form of a break (Campbell, 2006).The internet has been blamed for casing intense cheating during examinations especially where students are conversant with various search engines which increase the speed at which queries are answered.
This method of cheating disrupts the train of thought for students who find the examination challenging yet they lack any other option of obtaining the required answers. The distraction occurs when they get to notice that other students are finding the questions easier by downloading answers from the internet Summers, (2007).At times, the games or various facilities offered by cell phones are usually associated with certain noises some of them very shrill. The noise on its own is a distraction to nay activity which was ongoing especially to those who are trying really hard to brainstorm during a discussion. Such a noise often disrupts the whole lesson such that after it has been contained it becomes difficult to continue and some sort of flash back has to be played to revert the minds of both the learners and the teachers to where they discussion prior to the disruption Allender, (2007).Occasionally, most students find it quite distractive when their desk mate is busy doing something on their cell phone such as texting.
The concentration of the other students depends on collective elimination of such behaviors such that it is only after the neighbor stops operating the phone that maximum concentration will be achieved. Consequently, the individual using the cell phone in class understand less of what is being delivered by the teacher in terms of perception as well as declining the ability to remember the contents of the lesson. This is especially extreme when the students use their cellular phones to pass notes in class in addition to planning for extracurricular activities thus distracting not only the sender but also the recipient of the message (Campbell, 2006).Some students who are not interested in the lesson may opt to take indiscrete photographs of their friends in class or during a discussion forum such that instead of paying attention to what is being said, they spend all their energy making fun of their friends who adapt funny postures in class. This creates a poor study environment due to aspects of noise associated with the action as well as heated arguments based on the fact that learners are photographed without their consentSummers, (2007).
Ipods and their effect on the learning environment
Modern day learners have a unique way of storing their music in an Ipod such that they are able to access it whenever they feel like listening to music. This facility enables them to store thousands of songs and as it is quite small in size, as well as its increased portability. It therefore becomes quite easy to carry the same to class or even in the study room such that the student is able to listen to music as they carry out their studiesDaniels, (2007). Sometimes the flow of concepts is interrupted especially when the learner is listening to their favorite song. This disruption may often cause unnecessary delays in perception of various concepts as well as having dire effects on the learner’s level of concentration.Daniels, (2007).In as much as some students will always include music in their background when carrying out private studies, the degree of concentration is usually lower as compared to those who do not include it as part of their studiesAllender, (2007).
References
Allender, K. (2007), Cell phones distract during classes. Retrieved on May 31, 2010 from: www.sccollegian.com/…/Cell-Phones.Distract.During.Classes- 2723070.shtml
Campbell, S. (2006). Perceptions of mobile phones in college classrooms: Ringing, cheating, and classroom policies. Communication Education, 55 (3), 280-294.
Daniels, J. (2007), Cell phones causing distractions in class. The Apache Pow Wow. Retrieved on May 31, 2010 from: www.tjcnewspaper.com/…/Cell- Phones.Causing.Distractions.In.Class–3915743.shtml –
Summers, C. (2007), Addressing Classroom Distraction of Cell Phones Has Become Frequent Necessity for Teachers. Sussy Publishers.
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