Are Students Really Paying Attention to the Lecture?

A majority of my classes in college have consisted of lectures, where professors would teach for a certain period of time. The ability to access computers are limited, depending on the course. Some students actually use their computers for unrelated school activities, such as surfing the web or other personal tasks. A selected few will actually have their screens on blackboard’s home page or following along the instructor’s lecture through PowerPoint.

Now that I am picking my last semester of classes for the Spring of 2019, I thought about all of the other courses I previously took within my college journey. Of course you have your boring classes, while you have interactive courses with mandatory participation.

For the lectures however, it’s almost guaranteed that no one is really paying attention to the lesson. Occasionally sitting in the back of the class for a few times, I was able to get a sense of what most students were working on. It’s not that I deliberately pay close attention to the screens in front of me, it’s just that they can be too distracting to not look at. I find it very funny though. As said before, it’s common for a female student to be surfing through the web, following the latest trends and styles. However, male students will usually be looking up whatever pleases them in that time of moment. I cannot help but laugh when I see something particular on someone’s screen. In the past courses I’ve took, I have seen students play rollercoaster tycoon, Fort Nite, or even watch a NFL game by chance. In reality, professors know what their students are doing behind the screen; more or less, they know when the student is paying attention or not. Some students would be able to get away with watching a whole Netflix show for the whole class period, which blows my mind. The development of the use of computers and tablets have grown throughout the years, which is something most students, including myself are taking advantage of today.