Straight Talk TNT

Do electronic distractions make you dumb?

Mar 03, 2010

DEAR STRAIGHT TALK: I’m a junior and my grades are suffering. My dad says it’s because I’m on Facebook and listening to music while I do homework. I don’t know what to believe. All of my friends do it and their parents never say anything. I have a C- in almost all my classes. Is it really that I’m just distracted when I’m doing my homework? — Kelly

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Hannah 18, Auburn, Calif. Ask me a question

I had a similar problem my junior year and my grades suffered too. I would text in class even when points were deducted for having your phone out. While doing homework, I listened to music constantly and always chose Facebook, TV, or texting over reviewing my notes before a test. My senior year I knew I needed to change. Now I read and finish all of my homework before texting or using Facebook. I still listen to music though. My grades have improved tremendously and I actually understand what my teachers are talking about. If you pull straight C-‘s your senior year you’ll have fewer college options and will be shocked at how hard it is.

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Catherine 22, Amherst, Mass. Ask me a question

This has been a big problem for me too. I can get sucked into Facebook and hours disappear. Sometimes I turn off the link on my laptop to remove the temptation. Try avoiding Facebook for a week. Try instrumental music with nothing to sing to. If you don’t need your computer to study, put it away. If none of that works, you may need a tutor.

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Brie 18, Ashland, Ore. Ask me a question

I have a much harder time studying if I am texting or on Facebook. I give myself half an hour of Internet before homework, then when it’s done, I can spend all the hours I want there.

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Maureen 18, Redding, Calif. Ask me a question

Everyone is different. When I do schoolwork on the computer, I’ll have Facebook and other windows opened, and often the TV on, and my grades are great. But people learn differently. Bottom line: find what works for you. Have Firefox block Facebook.

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Scot 23, San Luis Obispo, Calif. Ask me a question

What works for your friends might not work for you. Try studying disconnected for a couple of weeks. When I’m studying I usually listen to music, but I have to change it to something less distracting if I am reading dense material or my comprehension level drops drastically. I try to set up timed goals for myself while studying, like every 25 pages of reading I get a five-minute Facebook break.

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Graham 16, Fair Oaks, Calif. Ask me a question

When I would have Facebook open, what should’ve been a 30-minute work project would take much longer. Now I’ve limited my distractions. I stopped using social sites during the week and I don’t listen to music while working.

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Nicole 20, Arcata, Calif. Ask me a question

Your dad is definitely right. When doing homework, do nothing else. No chatting, no looking at your friends’ pictures. And no music unless it’s mellow with few lyrics. Focus. Your grades will rise

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Lauren Ask me a question

DEAR KELLY: I am beginning to believe that much of the stress your generation complains about — and parents worry about (teen stress being the top concern for most parents) — is not because expectations are significantly higher than previous generations, but because your generation’s attention is constantly jack-hammered into worthless bits by endless distractions from texting, emailing and social networking sites. It’s harder to do your work and it takes longer. Your father is right and the panel agrees. While studying, turn that stuff off. Recall the 2005 Hewlett Packard-commissioned study that showed that responding to texts and emails while doing other tasks dropped a person’s IQ more than twice as much as being stoned on pot. That’s how dumb these interruptions make you! Write us back when you start getting A’s.

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Editor’s Web Note: Talk about brain drain. Multi-tasking is the biggest mass waste of our evolved brain to date. As you see from the Hewlett Packard-commissioned study that I cite below, constant tending to emails, texts, Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, etc., while you’re trying to work makes you twice as dumb as if you smoked a joint. Or didn’t sleep at all the night before. Parents need to insist on electronic-free homework time for their kids. In addition to better grades, they will feel less stressed. — Lauren Forcella

Comments

  1. By Vanessa from Galt, Calif. on 03/03/2010

    I, for one, cannot read and listen to music. Set time aside for non-multitasking homework. If your grades don’t improve, consider a tutor or study group.

  2. By Katelyn from Huntington Beach, Calif. on 03/03/2010

    Yes, Facebook and Myspace are considered distractions to homework. You constantly have to check up on the updates or chat with your friends, taking your attention off what you’re supposed to be doing. But if music makes your mind less stressed, then by all means, listen to your iPod. A lot of teachers at my school allow iPods during free days or study halls because students say it makes work easier to do.

  3. By Ashley from Auburn, Calif. on 03/03/2010

    I really don’t think that our generation has more academic pressure than others. But, yes, there are many more distractions now. We have anything and everything at our fingertips. If you really want to do good work, turn off the music, put the phone aside, and do your work. When you are done you can have it back. See if it works.

  4. By Joanna from El Dorado Hills, CA on 03/04/2010

    My twin brother and I were like you.  We spent much of our “study” time on MySpace, Facebook and talking and texting on our cell phones.  We were getting C’s, so we didn’t see a problem.  However, our Mom didn’t find the C’s acceptable and forced us to spend 2 hours of quiet study time in our room every day after school.  Our cell phones had to be turned off and we were under threat of having them taken away for a month if we were caught talking or texting. We are only allowed to use the computer in our room for school work during this time. At first we were very angry and thought she was being very unfair and unreasonable, but guess what? It worked wonders. We are now getting all A’s and B’s (and more and more A’s all the time).  There is still plenty of time for MySpace, Facebook, and talking and texting later.  I recommend that you give quiet study time a try. A C- isn’t exactly something to brag about.

    Joanne

  5. By jacky from USA on 08/18/2010

    Some of the biggest technology firms, including Microsoft, Intel, Google and I.B.M., are banding together to fight information overload. Last week they formed a nonprofit group to study the problem, publicize it and devise ways to help workers — theirs and others — cope with the digital deluge.

    Their effort comes as statistical and anecdotal evidence mounts that the same technology tools that have led to improvements in productivity can be counterproductive if overused.The big chip maker Intel found in an eight-month internal study that some employees who were encouraged to limit digital interruptions said they were more productive and creative as a result.Intel and other companies are already experimenting with solutions. Small units at some companies are encouraging workers to check e-mail messages less frequently, to send group messages more judiciously and to avoid letting the drumbeat of digital missives constantly shake up and reorder to-do lists.

  6. By Christine Mordaunt from Flagstaff, AZ on 09/09/2010

    Yes, I feel like everyone is different. Some people have the ability to multi-task and other dont. Personally I turn my phone off during class but not while I study because I have friends in class & I sometime ask them questions. When it comes to Facbook I am on it everyday. Most of my classmates are on facebook also and it gives us a connection to help out with homework and studying. When I need to put the peddle to the metal I turn off all electronics and study by myself, but I always prefer the extra help.

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