One question that has plagued educators during the recent technological explosion over the last several years is whether the use of computers should be allowed during class time. The benefits of computer use by students are obvious, as computers enable students to take clear and organized notes on what their instructors teach during class. However, computers pose a severe distraction to students, as access to internet and social media may cause many students to get sidetracked from what their instructors are teaching. As a result, many have argued that the use of computers during class time should be prohibited.
The current policy at TABC is to allow students to use their computers during class, provided that they are productively taking notes on what is being taught during class. However, if an instructor realizes that a student is using his computers for other purposes, his computer privileges may be revoked.
In a recent poll, students were asked if they used their computers during class or if they only used them for certain classes. The students who responded that they do use their computers during class were then asked about what purposes their computers serve them during class time. The results are shown below:
“Do you use a computer during class?”
“What do you mainly use your computer for in class?”
As shown by the results, the vast majority of students in TABC say they use their computers during all or some of their classes. In addition, most of the students who use their computers during class say they use them for note taking.
It is interesting to note that 12.8% of students in the school say they do not use computers during school. These students were asked why they don’t use computers during class. Their responses are shown below:
Students gave many interesting reasons as to why they don’t use their computers during class. Only 20% of students claimed that they do not use their computers during class because they find it to be distracting. The other 80% of students do not use their computers for other, more technical, reasons.
As evidenced by the poll, most students in TABC use their students for productive note taking and find their computers to be a very significant aid to the learning process. However, there is still a very large contingency of TABC students who use their computers to play games and for other purposes. While TABC should continue to enable to allow students to use their computers during class for productive purposes, it should find better ways to crack down on the large amount of students who use their computers for purposes that distract them from the teaching going on during class.