I have my own litany of websites that I use to procrastinate....I have even deactivated my facebook account to save myself the distraction during the semester. I am also familiar with the feeling of accomplishment that staying on a task without distracting myself brings. It's nice to realize, at least, that the compulsion to procrastinate will diminish if not reinforced. Meditation has definitely helped me identify my habits as well.

Is The Internet Making Us Stupid? (NPR)
My reaction to this article is that I don't think the internet is making us stupid, but I do think it could be giving us a form of ADD.

 

I am often tempted to check all the apps on my phone to keep myself updated with what’s going on in the world even if I just checked them ten minutes ago. To get better at this I have been trying to put my phone somewhere where I will have to get up and grab it so I am forced to decide whether or not it is worth the effort to grab it.  One way I have found that helps me to study better is by going to the library, but even then I can only concentrate on homework for so long before I need a break. The best way for me to learn something is to work on it with other people. 

 

I do not pay much attention to technology. 

In my engineering classes, I like to follow a certain flow for studying. First before the class I would read the text on what would be covered the next day. Once in class I focus on what the professor is talking about and try to get good notes on the key ideas. After the class, I will sit down and do the homework sets without looking through the book so that the material starts to stick in my head. When I get stuck on I problem and only when I am stuck, I will then go to the book for help. After completing the assignment, I like to do the other work problems in the book because they help build on remembering the ideas. 

 

Since I've moved to college, I've noticed a striking lack of simply sitting and thinking. I'm always doing something or occupying myself with something, much like and ADD person. Maybe I'm being affected by the internet more than I think.

As for non-academics, I simply got good by doing. Practice and trying are really the starting points for getting good at something new. For me, that's mechanics, driving, and computer assembly. Even if I didn't know anything at first, I just went ahead and tried anyways, and eventually I got better. 

 

The information contained within the articles was rather fascinating, especially given that I caught myself engaging the very activities it was denouncing as distracting. What I found most humorous, and a bit frightening, is that when I reached the point where the one article discusses how attention spans are shortening to the point that one finds it difficult to read completely the very article I was reading. I took a break at that point and read my email and came back to the article. Furthermore, upon completing the reading, I took another break and spent twenty minutes watching YouTube clips instead of writing my reaction to the article. My behavior during the completion of this assignment alone is indicative that I suffer the perils of distracting technology. 

 

I try to multitask too much, but more significantly, I am way too distracted by the social media such as Facebook and texting. ...However, I am writing this email in the campus library right now (on the 3rd floor where it's quiet) as a resolve to get into better study habits.

 

"Is the Internet Making Us Stupid" really resonated with me in that I find it very difficult to sit down and just read for an extended period of time.  In order to study/do homework I like to go to a coffee shop so I am not distracted by TV or friends, this has been very effective for me.  Repeatedly doing problems and seeing how the solutions come to fruititon is how I learn best. In the future I would like to try turning my phone off while I study.

 

I thought that the second article was very long. I had to force myself to finish it and to not get distracted. Which is really ironic. I found it really interesting that meditation helped people focus more. 

I am very good at piano. I got good by practicing. For the first five years or so, I was absolutely awful, because I wouldn't practice. But then I heard just a touch of improvement and suddenly was waking up at 5 am to practice. Also, I am good because I am mindful of the mistakes I make. If you practice making the same mistake it becomes engrained in you and it is difficult to break that habit. Sometimes, I get sloppy but I take a break and play fun songs or stop playing and then I come back and play it very slowly and carefully until I can play it slow 5 times in a row. Then I try faster until I mess up. And I repeat that until I get it consistently. 

 

What it comes down  to is people don't like to study. They will find any excuse in the world to not do it if they can. ... Your committment to your educaton will determine how you study.  ... the real problem is we are less committed to education. Because in the end the only thing that is going to make you learn and study is yourself. 

It doesn't matter how good a teacher you have, you will never learn a thing without motivation on your part. That is what causes true learning, motivation.

 

In the past my brother would watch TV on one computer screen and do his homework on the other. This was interesting and I asked him how he could focus. His response was, “I can handle it.” I attempted to do the same thing and it did NOT work. Nothing was getting done for the reasons that Mr. Mayr and Mr. Levy referred to in the article.

 

If the homework I am doing is for a class that I am not comfortable with, I will turn everything off and just focus on the assignment.  Also, if I am studying for a test I go to the library and turn off my phone so I do not have any distractions.  Sometimes it does help me to listen to music; however, the only music I listen to while doing homework is piano music.  I cannot listen to anything with words because soon I will be singing along in my head rather than paying attention to what I need to be doing.  

 

If we use Google often to look up answers and not try to understand what really is happening, our society will be in trouble, but if we use Google as a springboard to start us on a path of learning about something new, it will be very beneficial. Unfortunately, it is very tempting to only use Google for answers and not try to actually learn the material.

What doesn’t work for me is group studying. I have a hard time making the brain connections needed to remember if I have to converse with others that I may be studying with. There is too much distraction and it is hard to concentrate. 

 

Multitasking is something I've considered quite a few times because time management has been hard for me recently (or perhaps subconsciously to defend my study habits). ... I began to realize I needed to devote blocks of time to schoolwork. 

On the subject of  studying habits, I've recently taken to listening to classical music on low volume because it tones out distracting noises.

 

I grew up on a farm, where hard work and discipline was expected, and we had no internet, and television and video games were only occasional means of entertainment.  I always go to bed at a reasonable time, and get up before 7, 6 or 7 days a week, every week of the year.  With such discipline, it becomes a lot easier to be successful.  Also, my life has purpose and meaning.  My faith in God and joy in knowing Him helps me get up in the morning and strive to do the best I can do in all that I do.  It gives me hope regardless of my circumstances and prevents me from put useless things into my mind and body.  My success in school doesn’t come merely from rigorous study, but from a lifestyle devoted and motivated to do whatever I do with my best effort.

 

I am willing to admit that I am addicted to the Internet and that it is keeping me from reading and other things. I have never joined Facebook, because I know that it would be a huge time waster for me, just like Pinterest and YouTube. Don’t get me wrong, these sites can be useful, however the user has be disciplined enough to use them sparingly.

I admit that this is the hardest course I have ever taken because it is using parts of my brain that have never been used before and it literally hurts my brain. 

 

I have taken to looking at school like a 40 hour a week job. I am up at 8 and do not allow myself to slack until 5. Then from 5-7 I typically give myself a dinner break and then either have the evening off, or finish any homework assignments I didn't do during the day. I also limit the amount of time I look at my phone. I only check Facebook, Instagram, email etc. during lunch and dinner and then typically for a half hour or so before bed. Also, if I am working on a homework assignment, I have to work until its finished before I check my phone, or I check it every hour (whichever comes first) to respond to any texts I've received. Actively limiting the amount I check my phone has helped increase my productivity.

 

I study by going to the library, or another place that isn't my bedroom, and I attempt to immerse myself into my studies so I am distracted less by the media and my own thoughts. What doesn't work is when I let myself get distracted and end up spending my studying being very unproductive. 

 

When I really need to concentrate to get something done, I usually turn everything else off, go somewhere quiet, and focus on that one item until it’s done, but in general I do not. In the future, I intend to turn the distractions off more often so that I can focus on the current project I’m working on and to split the projects into smaller chunks, because I’ve always found it much easier to complete a bunch of small tasks instead of one big one.

 

In the future, I think by just going to the third floor of the library (the quiet floor) and turning all my devices off and strictly focusing on one thing for a prolonged amount of time, I will be more productive in my studies. 

Especially for this class, reading is the most important part and reading is something that takes 100 percent focus with no distractions.

 

...  This is where media has helped me. I am someone who is very comfortable in their own environment so I often do most of my studying in my room. This can be a problem since I do have so many distractions. It also helps me though. I know that I have the tools to take a break when I am too ingrained in an assignment and need to take a step back. I can get online and read a few articles or read a book for 20 minutes then come back to what I was working on. Since I give myself so much time to complete assignments this actually works really well for me. ... 

 

The key thing that helps me to study later is taking notes on lectures in class and rereading those. It is something about listening and transcribing notes myself that helps me learn, and when I cannot do that I always tend to do worse. For this class, and in the future I will be attending all lectures to make sure I can take notes. 

 

It is truly a challenge maintaining focus with the internet always at our hands. 

I think studying without my phone or computer in the same room would be enormously beneficial and I am really looking forward to trying it out and increasing my efficiency.

 

I think the most effective means of studying, at least for me, is to simply write something many times. 

Basically, if I write it, it sticks. 

 

The use of the internet differently has an effect on the brain but I strongly disagree with linking it to making people stupid. ... It decreases our ability to have long term memory while increasing short term memory use. Mainly people experience a transition of being able to take in tons of information and forget tons of information. Focus on complex problems does suffer but the focus on complex problems is not the only thing that separate stupid people from smart people.

 

I work 35+ hours a week, but I must also spend a very large portion of my time outside of work thinking about work. This is easily my largest distraction.

Fortunately, my student success adviser has helped me prioritize my schedule more, which has definitely shown some improvements.

 

I find that studying in a group can be helpful because if there is something that you are confused about you can ask someone in the group.  This allows them to explain a topic which helps both people involved retain more of the information.  I find reading to be difficult and I believe I understand the material best when I can see many solved examples.

 

The two articles that you had us read were very interesting. I was actually struck with my desire to check on other things, or take a break from reading while reading those articles, and had to intentionally fight to continue reading through the end.  

It is interesting to note that the tasks that allow my mind to wander, and the tasks where I am able to dream and multitask well are manual labor in an outside environment, which is not exactly without stimuli. I wonder if there is some fundamental difference about being outside that allows seemingly more effective multitasking. 

 

When learning in the past, I have attempted to find ways of remembering new material by connecting it to things I have learned in the past. This strengthens the connections in my brain and allow me to learn things long term. Specifically with Methods of Proof, I take the time to read the book as well as completing the homework to determine how well I learned the material. 

 

What the internet has done is make it easier to be lazy and still find the information required, so that perhaps the lazier people who still had need of information are now as exposed as the people who never read anyway. 

 

While multitasking isn't the norm for me, I do certainly as a student taking 21 credits, having two jobs, and performing as a research assistant, focus on a myriad of things throughout the day. I do believe my ability to carry on without being too distracted is based on military training, where one is expected to carry on a specific task despite any environmental distractions. I decide what I intend to work on and get the work done before moving on to something else. This is why I believe some people do need some way to train their own discipline, ...

The two paths to being really good at something are natural talent and extended periods of practice. Natural talent will only get you so far in most things, and some people have no natural talent at all, but everyone can benefit from extended practice.

 

Long ago I recognized my inability to multitask.

Regarding constant distractions, I find the idea of short, mindful meditation to be incredibly effective- and something I finally realized recently for myself. 

I find it incredibly frustrating that the bulk of employers in the U.S. value the ability to multitask, when they really should value the ability to focus wholly on one topic and employ effective switching between tasks- because I think multitasking is truly a mythical ability, and if you can effectively 'multitask' then you are probably not completing any one task fully and effectively. 

 


... People do not read entire articles because most web pages contain much more information than we actually need. ... However most fields are moving towards skimming and pulling out pertinent info. 

My professor gives me problems in a specific form, and most of the time the question is not answered in exactly that form on the internet. I have to be able to look at 5 or 10 different pages and pull out the relevant information. If I tried to read 1 at a time, and understand everything on each page I would never finish. But if I open 5 pages at a time, and find out how each relates to my problem then I can work much faster. I have to be able to realize that a certain page is not going to be helpful immediately, or else I will waste a bunch of time trying to learn something that will not help me. 

Technology is not inherently good or bad, the way we use it determines its value.

 

One method I think works well in exercising your focus that I'm particularly fond of is reading non-fiction books. I have been an avid reader since an early age and I think this has had a positive impact on my study habits.

I notice much better results in my studying when I spend roughly an hour on one single subject in complete isolation from distraction. If I need to study for more than an hour (which is often the case) I generally take a ten minute break between hours of studying.

Often times using my computer as a study aid is necessary, but the urge to do something off task when my computer is around can cause problems. Another technique I have found useful while studying is to try and keep the big picture in mind. Aside from the above, I think repetition plays a major role in effectively learning something. 

 

I would definitely say that media distracts me and not in a good way. ...

I came across a learning method in an article  by the CFO (I think) of YCombinator, a startup incubator in Silicon
Valley, about how he utilized the Spaced Repetition to learn something and  it forever. I was so excited about it that I made it one of my new resolutions to use this method with my classes this semester.

 

Suggestions for improving concentration:

One grad student went on-line and bought a 20-minute timer (like an hour glass, but only 20 minutes. They come with other durations, too). It is quite attractive with nice black sand. When she begins a task, she turns over the timer and cannot leave the task until the timer runs out, at which time she can take a break or check her phone.

If you have a good idea, send it to me, westy at math dot montana dot edu

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