When Technology Becomes a Nuisance in the Classroom

With the passing of each semester, it becomes more common for students to bring their laptops into the their college lectures or seminars. In fact, more universities are beginning to acknowledge this trend by providing more outlets for students. In some cases, some professors even base their curriculums around the use of a laptop or computer during class.

However, as with any form of technology there has been a growing undercurrent of opposition to the use of laptops as being a nuisance in the classroom. Some professors complain that students end up surfing the Internet, watching pornography and offending others with it or are only learning to type really fast by bringing their laptops.

In response to those concerns, there are an increasing number of universities, many of them law schools, that are beginning to ban the use of laptops in the classroom. One professor for Suffolk University Law School has done just that after deciding that students viewing obscene videos or sending threatening text messages via their laptops could be offensive towards others. And she was not the only one. A large number of Duke University Law School professors have also banned the use of laptops causing the university to go back on its laptop requirement for students.

All of this academic policymaking reduces down to the question of whether the good outweighs the bad in the case of laptops or even just desktop computers in a college setting.

When computers and laptops were first introduced into college classes, they were viewed as the great hope in bringing students and academia forward. There was thought to be some grand potential for this technology. However, the hope for the technology has really only fizzled as more students tend to misuse it rather than use it to heighten their academic potential. When lectures are extremely boring, it is that much easier to use Wi-Fi and go on the Internet rather than the standard of doodling and scribbling all over one's notebook until the lecture is over.

Many professors go through the Blackboard system which is like an online community with a board, information on assignments and messaging system for only that one semester's class. Technology such as this is useful but not necessarily something that needs to be pulled up during each class meeting. Likewise, it is helpful in some cases for a professor to be able to tell his or her students to go onto one particular web site at any given time during the class, but not absolutely necessary. Is it helpful? Yes. Does it actually enhance or make better the learning experience? That is where the debate comes in.

Some professors have become so paranoid about students doing something other than coursework on the computer (with either desktops or laptops), they make it a point to have students shut off their monitors and then go around checking each monitor. What an incredible waste of class time.

There is nothing wrong with hand writing lecture notes. And there is also nothing wrong with learning off of a chalkboard or white board instead of a computer. Some people keep telling themselves that there is something wrong and that if we don't have expensive toys like laptops, then we're some how cheating students out of a better future. However, in many ways, teaching college students to be dependent on technology can hinder them more than having to learn from outdated classroom tools.

Exposure to technology is good, but overexposure only leads to dependency and this can be seen at every level - not just the classroom what with our cell phone use, wireless Internet and iPods. The list just goes on.