The majority of students voted NO to our last poll – which asked if students should be allowed to use their laptops while class is in session. There were a total of 38 votes in roughly 26 days. The poll was posted late afternoon May 30 and removed the morning of April 24.
Fifty five percent of students voted NO (21 votes), 34 percent voted YES (13 votes) and 11 percent (4 votes) said they were not sure.
I posted this poll because during one of my classes, I took a look around the room and noticed almost half the students were using their laptops. It made me think how many of my peers were using their computers for class related activity and how many were using them for unrelated class activity.
My conclusion was that it was probably a mix. In the two years I have been a graduate student at Stony Brook, I have seen and heard several of my classmates use their laptops for completely non-related class activity.
For the most part, we are a computer driven student body. However, when a person comes to class their focus should be on the lesson at hand. One of the elements I enjoy most about my classes is the open discussion between professors and students. If a student is engaged with reading about their favorite sports team or catching up on Facebook, there are less people involved in the discussion. Further, it is disrespectful to ignore the professor's lesson plan when a lot of time and effort has gone into it.
Curious to see how others felt, I was hoping to get some opinions posted about students using their laptops while class is in session. Three comments were posted.
One student wrote: “We go over lots of papers in my classes. I don't print them out; instead, I use my laptop. It saves paper and, as an added bonus, I can search for any word inside the paper we are going over!”
Another comment received was: “I type much much faster than I can write by hand. My notes taken on my laptop are always more in depth. I depend on using my lap top in class to have notes that make studying easier. Don't even joke about taking lap tops out of class!"
These are both solid points. Although the question still remains what percent of students use their laptops for class related activities and what percent use them for absolutely nothing to do with what is being discussed in class.
One student offered not only their opinion, but a possible solution to the dilemma of the possible misuse of laptops in class. This person said the use of laptops in class should be permissible “only if [professors] institute a clear policy.”
Their comment was: “I find the typing distracting and the possibility of misuse problematic. Yet for those actually using their laptops for note taking, this is clearly an invaluable and efficient resource. To those in favor of it, I would ask: how might teachers police their use? As long as teachers institute a clear policy and are vigilant about making sure students are not abusing this privilege, then perhaps some compromise can be reached.”
This comment makes me wonder if this person is a Public Policy major. Most policies involve compromise.
While there are benefits for students using their laptops in class, such as note taking and quick research answers, the use should be limited. An idea to solve the use of laptops in class dilemma may revolve around professors going over what their laptop policy is the first day of class or perhaps even putting it right on the syllabus.
Although the real shame in the dilemma is why should professors have to concern themselves about policing students laptop use at all?
