Should schools ban spiral notebooks? After all, writes Thomas Arnett of the Christensen Institute, students often use them “to scribble or doodle, pass messages to their friends, or construct wads, planes, and spitball projectiles.” They can be a distraction. digital distraction, Arnett writes. A study found college students allowed to use computers in class earned lower scores on their final exams than students in classes where laptops were forbidden. Like spiral notebooks,

Maine launched its laptops-for-all program 15 years ago, reports Robbie Feinberg on NPR. “Maine became the first, and still only, state to offer a statewide laptop program to certain grade levels.” Are students learning more? Not in measurable ways. . . . after a decade and a half, and at a cost of about $12 million annually (around one percent of the state’s education budget), Maine has yet to see any measurable increases on statewide standardized test scores. That’s part of

Bringing a laptop to class is a mistake, writes Cindi May in Scientific American, citing Michigan State research. Although computer use during class may create the illusion of enhanced engagement with course content, it more often reflects engagement with social media, YouTube videos, instant messaging, and other nonacademic content. This self-inflicted distraction comes at a cost, as students are spending up to one-third of valuable (and costly) class time zoned out, and the

Using a laptop to take notes in a college lecture classes is linked to lower grades — especially for weaker students — in two new studies, reports Dan Willingham. #distraction #laptops #lectures