Professors Unhappy with Wireless Laptops in Class
Some professors are concerned that students are checking their e-mail and otherwise goofing on in class instead of taking notes, reporteth the Daily Cal. Students protest that they are just multitasking, and one professor says that wireless is great because students can pull up information about a lecture topic and then offer dissenting viewpoints that they have found. (Has anyone ever seen this happen in class, ever?). But the real reason that I bring this up, is because while normally I make fun of the Daily Cal when CalStuff scoops then by a day or two on a story, here is something that I reported on, in the Squelch magazine, last year. Take it away, myself:

Not a Single Laptop Being Used to Take Notes
Andy Ratto, His Is a 10, Vol.13 Iss.5

A recent campus-wide study has revealed that not a single laptop is currently being used to take notes in class.

The leading uses reported for laptops were playing card games, Minesweeper, that one pinball game, and surfing the Internet. “Anyone can take notes,” said Ethan Adams, owner of a laptop. “But with my computer in class I can just tune out Snoozy McLearno up there and go to ratemypoo.com.”

“I think it's wonderful seeing all these laptops,” said Randolph Starn, Professor Emeritus of History. “I'm just thrilled that students enjoy my lectures so much that they would want to hold on to them into the far distant future.”

The rest of Starn's remarks were drowned out by a tide of laptop typing and mouse clicks.

Email This Post!