The Harvest Is Ready, But the Workers Are Few

Many postsecondary faculty may be missing out on a valuable opportunity to enhance their pedagogical practices. I was reading an article about a Syracuse professor who initiated a “do not text policy” in his course. The policy warned students that the professor would stop teaching and dismiss class if the professor saw any student texting during class. The implementation of the policy was motivated by frequent accounts of students texting and gaming during class lectures. After a student sitting on the front row showed a blatant disregard for the professor’s policy and sent a text message, the professor, adhering to his policy, walked out of class. The professor sent a statement to his students and his dean to explain his actions. He expressed frustration with the lack of respect among students and threatened to end his tenure at Syracuse University. Many bloggers seem to side with the professor about the blatant disrespect of students, but perhaps, there is a greater issue looming.

For instance, the class meets in a lecture hall where the professor provides philosophy lectures to students. This learning format violates everything we know about information processing and the characteristics of the Net Generation. Information processing theory suggests that we have limited working memory to process information. This assertion suggests that students are not likely to process lengthy class lectures in the time allotted. In fact, students may experience cognitive overload if an attempt is made to process an entire classroom lecture during a single class session. Years of experience with the lecture format have likely taught students that lengthy classroom lectures can place excessive cognitive demands on the human brain. These demands usually exceed the capacity confines of human brain function. Therefore, it is possible that students do not expect to benefit from course lectures. This perspective might explain why students engage in activities such as texting and gaming during class lectures.

To further put the behavior of contemporary college students into perspective, we must identify and acknowledge the unique characteristics of the Net Generation. Contemporary research on the information economy suggests that contemporary college students should be self-regulating life-long learners, who are capable of strategic learning. The Net Generation fits this description as evidenced by the phenomenon of texting. This phenomenon shows us that the Net Generation is strategic in finding new ways to communicate. Texting provides evidence that the Net Generation is strategic in creating what appears to be new language conventions. Strategic behavior is also seen in this generation’s strong interest in gaming. Such behavior might be viewed by Generation Xers and Baby Boomers as a young person succumbing to the temptations of instant gratification and unending pleasantries.

I believe that most students would agree that texting and gaming in class shows brazen disrespect for university faculty; however, our postsecondary institutions might consider strategies to actively engage our students in strategic learning—a style of learning that is consistent with the behavior of contemporary college students. Colleges and universities might also be wise to explore the utility of mobile phones and texting devices in the learning environment.