Effect of Electronics on Education
by Aayush Karmacharya
Background Information
The goal of this project was to find out whether most students thought that electronics were helpful or harmful to their learning, with the Area of Interaction being Human Ingenuity. Being a student myself, I wanted to learn more about the opinions of others on this topic. The internet seems like a great tool for education as there is a very large source of information, but there are many distractions on it which can cause one to quickly lose focus as well. From the research, it was found that there are many online resources that people could use to learn more about a topic that they have to study in school or are just interested in such as Khan Academy. A computer makes knowledge as accessible as a library does, but it is much more convenient. However, it was also found from the research that electronics are tools for procrastination as well, but a person that would procrastinate just browsing the internet would likely procrastinate without it. People, and especially teens like me, would rather do unimportant things that they find enjoyable over more important tasks, and the electronics are the perfect tool to do/watch the unimportant but entertaining things.
Results of the Survey: Popular Opinion on Online Tools
Most people that have taken this survey were heavy users of electronics, as over 5 hours of use a day was the most common answer. The majority admitted to the issue that electronics can cause one to procrastinate, with the few that used electronics for 1-2 hours a day being the minority that didn't procrastinate. Basically everyone that took this survey was in favor of Chromebooks in the class, but a few were against it. The people that were against it brought up the point that electronics can be distracting and harm the ability to concentrate when trying to learn. Overall however, most people said that regulated use of electronics, such as Chromebooks in the classroom, help get a task done quickly. People said electronics in general can both help and harm learning, A lot of the data from the survey matches the information from the research that was done. The answers from most survey takers supported the
Reflecting on the Research and Survey Data
It's evident that an electronic like a computer can be very useful since there's a large amount of information available that's easily accessible on the internet. There are online sites for school related subjects, news, and some databases that have basically everything. Wikipedia, a site cherished by students but distrusted by teachers is the most well-known example of an online resource. As found in the research, the internet greatly improves the ability of a person to scan through and find information rapidly and efficiently. However, there are clear cons that comes along with the use of electronics. It can't be denied that there are many distractions while using a phone or computer that can tempt your attention away from the task that you're trying to focus on, and that would have a very negative effect on education.
Conclusion: The Next Step
- Based on the research and the survey results, electronics in the class like Chromebooks seem to be beneficial to the learning of most students, but in other environments could lead to procrastination that would be harmful for their education.
- The phone, being the most used device, is probably the most prominent source of procrastination out of all the electronics, and computers are more likely to be helpful for school related things.
- Local school districts should put more funds into Chromebooks for classes. Google Classroom makes it much easier for students to do assignments, and they won't have an excuse such as they forgot to write down the homework.
- High schools like Cordova should also advertise Chromebooks or just cheap computers and a cheap internet plan as well for sale at the beginning of the year so families that don't have access to the internet at home can purchase a hopefully affordable option.
- A world connection would be to encourage charities to donate computers and set up internet connections in poorer regions of the world so that children there would have access to a vast amount of knowledge that would've have been previously unreachable for them. It could speed up development of literacy in 3rd world countries.