Some Fun Facts About Education & Technology

I'm finishing up my syllabi for the Winter 2012 semester, and one of the many things that I've included that I don't enjoy is the restriction on in-class use of cell phones. Why such a hard-ass about smartphones? I've looked at the research in cognitive neuroscience on the problems with problem-solving and attention and task switching and the like, and it all points to one thing: Get those phones out of the classroom. Which is why I was interested to see the first graphic below.

Obv., the gist is that smartphones are being used more and more in the classroom for legit purposes, at least some of the time. There are some cool sites such as Poll Everywhere that allow for phone-based responses to questions in class, much like a clicker system. So now I'm torn -- I want to stay true to the research behind banning the phones, but I like the possibilities of getting data on relevant questions in pretty close to real time. And if in-class use of existing technologies can facilitate that, then I need to consider the possibilities.

Besides, life-integrated tech is what "the kids" are doing, and if we're going to succeed in education, there needs to be some movement on both sides of the professor-student divide w/r/t tools for engaging our charges. How wired are today's youths? Consider the second graphic below. Of course, when you are never off because you're always connected to a growing litany of personal tech, that has some implications for education and interpersonal interactions. Maybe I need to rethink my cell phone ban. Or maybe I need a spinal implant with USB's to power all my tech through the power of my own bodily processes. No matter what, however, the intersection of technology and education is uneasy and novel. And, from time to time, loud.

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