Disengagement during lectures: Media multitasking and mind wandering in university classrooms

Wammes, Jeffrey D.; Ralph, Brandon C. W.; Mills, Caitlin; Bosch, Nigel; Duncan, Tracy L.; Smilek, Daniel

doi:10.1016/j.compedu.2018.12.007

Cited by 100 publications

(89 citation statements)

References 64 publications

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“…This observation is similar to research that suggests students typically consider lectures as learning events that provide an overview of core learning activities, and other learning materials as opportunities for consolidating information acquired through lectures (Dommett et al 2019 ). Even though the provision of lecture recordings influence attendance, students occasionally miss lectures due to circumstances beyond their control (Wammes et al 2019 ). Therefore, there is inadequate evidence to suggest that the availability of lecture recording alone can lead to a decline in lecture attendance (Nordmann and Mcgeorge ( 2018 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sentiment Analysis of Student Engagement with Lecture Recording

Nkomo

Daniel

2021

TechTrends

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Lecture recordings are useful learning resources that can support flexible, remote and distance learning, especially during the Covid-19 pandemic. This study explored students' experiences of engaging with recorded lectures and the extent to which such engagement contributes to enhanced learning. The research involved the deployment of a questionnaire to undergraduate and postgraduate students (n = 660) who had access to lecture recordings at a research intensive public university in New Zealand. Key findings revealed that students who accessed lecture recordings reported an enhanced learning experience. They stated that the availability of lecture recordings created an inclusive learning environment for students with learning disabilities and fostered flexible learning for those who would otherwise be unable to attend lectures either due to sickness or work commitments. Data also suggest that students utilised lecture recordings as supplementary learning resources rather than a substitute for regular lecture attendance. Our findings substantiated previous research studies and additionally demonstrated the various ways in which students engage with lecture recordings. Moreover, the use of sentiment analysis shows how multiple data can be triangulated to confirm or contest research findings. Finally, we believe this study adds to the voice that lecture recordings are vital resources that support students' learning.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Sentiment Analysis of Student Engagement with Lecture Recording

Nkomo

Daniel

2021

TechTrends

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“…To date there have not been any studies that directly set out to test the relationship between seating position and computer use, although there was a recent exploratory report [25] tentatively suggesting that computer use and sitting position do not interact. However, as Wammes et al [25] hasten to note, their evidence on this issue was purely exploratory, being drawn from an analysis of less than 70 students.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…There is a small hint, however, that this is not the case. A recent, excellent study by Wammes et al [25] found that media multitasking (e.g., laptop use), but not mind wandering, had a negative effect on learning performance. And in a largely exploratory analysis, they compared performance as a function of seating location.…”

Section: Combined Effectsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of classroom seating location and computer use on student academic performance

2020

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A student's ability to learn effectively in a classroom setting is subject to many factors. While some factors are difficult to regulate, this study explores two factors that a student, or instructor, has full control over, namely 1) seating position, and 2) computer usage. Both factors have been studied considerably with regard to their effects on student performance, and the results indicate that sitting further from the instructor, or using a computer in the classroom, are related to a decline in grade performance. However, it is unclear if the choice of where to sit and whether or not to use a computer in class are mediated by the same cognitive process. If they are the same, then we would expect to see an interaction between the factors, such that, for example, computer usage would most negatively impact the grades of students who sit near the back of a class. This study aims to answer this question by looking at the individual and combined effects of seating position and computer usage on classroom performance. We sampled 1364 students, collecting nearly 3000 total responses across 5 different introductory psychology courses with 4 different instructors on 3 separate occasions. In agreement with previous research, we found that sitting further from the instructor negatively impacted students' grades (0.75 percentage points/row), and using a computer in class negatively impacted grades (by 3.88 percentage points). Our novel finding is that these deleterious effects combined in an additive manner, such that using a computer had the same harmful effect on grade performance regardless of whether the student sat at the front or back of the classroom.

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“…TUT reports also increase with time in class sessions (i.e., more TUTs later than earlier in class) in most studies (Cohen et al, 1956;Lindquist & McLean, 2011;Stuart & Rutherford, 1978;Varao-Sousa & Kingstone, 2019). Although increasing TUT rates fit with laboratory findings (e.g., Risko et al, 2012;, several recent studies have found unchanging or decreasing TUT rates with time in class (Wammes et al, 2016a(Wammes et al, , 2019. More data are needed to address these inconsistencies and explore further whether time-in-class effects distinguish laboratory from classroom TUTs.…”

Section: Task-unrelated Thought In Classroomsmentioning

confidence: 98%

Individual Differences in Task-Unrelated Thought in University Classrooms

Kane¹,

Carruth²,

Lurquin³

et al. 2020

Preprint

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This study investigated the academic traits and habits that predict individual differences in mind-wandering during lectures, and whether this mind-wandering propensity mediates the associations between academic traits and course outcomes (final grade and situational interest in the material). Undergraduates (N=851) from 10 psychology classes at two U.S. universities responded to thought probes presented during two lectures, one before and one after the first exam; they also indicated sitting in the front, middle, or back third of the classroom. At each probe, students categorized their thought content, such as indicating on-task or task-unrelated thought (TUT). Students completed on-line, academic-trait questionnaires at the beginning of the course and a situational interest questionnaire at the end; instructors reported students’ final course grades. Average TUT rate was 24% but individuals’ rates varied widely (SD=18%). TUT rates also increased substantially from the front to the back of the classroom. Multiple-group analyses (with groups representing 10 classrooms) indicated that: (a) classroom media-multitasking habits, initial interest in the course topic, and everyday propensity for mind-wandering and boredom accounted for unique variance in TUT rate (beyond other academic-trait predictors); (b) TUT rate accounted for unique (modest) variance in course grade and situational interest, and; (c) classroom media multitasking and propensity for mind-wandering and boredom had indirect associations with course grades via TUT rate, and these predictor variables, along with initial interest, also had indirect associations with end-of-term situational interest via TUT rate. Some educationally relevant traits and behaviors predict course outcomes in part because they predict in-class mind-wandering.

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Disengagement during lectures: Media multitasking and mind wandering in university classrooms

Cited by 100 publications

References 64 publications

Sentiment Analysis of Student Engagement with Lecture Recording

Sentiment Analysis of Student Engagement with Lecture Recording

The impact of classroom seating location and computer use on student academic performance

Individual Differences in Task-Unrelated Thought in University Classrooms

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