Reviews for Distracted : why students can't focus and what you can do about it

Publishers Weekly
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved

Lang (Small Teaching), an English professor at Assumption University, delivers an optimistic and useful guide to cultivating student attention. Soothing concerns that digital device dependency is degrading American classrooms, Lang contends that although the human brain has evolved to continually seek out novelty, teachers can harness this urge to get students to do the “hard cognitive work” of acquiring new knowledge. He tracks “anxiety about distraction” from ancient Greece to 17th-century London coffeehouses and the rise of video games in the 1980s, and debunks claims that the internet has permanently diminished human attention spans. Still, Lang acknowledges, “the people and devices who seek our attention have become better at soliciting it from us.” His suggestions for dealing with the proliferation of distractions in the classroom include “context-specific” policies regarding smartphone usage rather than outright bans and employing “signature attention activities” (such as prompting students to write about how the course material connects to their personal lives) in order to restore and renew focus. Lang’s lucid prose and dry wit make for a pleasant reading experience, and his evidence is consistently on-point. Teachers and parents teaching at home will find inspiration and insight in this sterling study of “the crucial connection between attention and learning.” (Oct.)


Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

A lucid discussion of attention and how to persuade students to pay it. A professor of English and director of the D'Amour Center for Teaching Excellence at Assumption University, Lang is addressing teachers, but he delivers advice with universal applications. Though modern technology usually receives the blame for restless, distracted students, it’s a problem as old as history. Socrates considered writing a malignant invention, a crutch that destroyed the ability to remember. “The telegraph, the radio, the television, the computer…brought with them critics who argued that they were destroying our attention spans,” writes the author, “turning us into distractible creatures who could no longer focus on our work, our prayers, our study, or one another.” Lang quickly shoots down the idea that modern students can effectively multitask. They can’t, except when one task is trivial, such as folding clothes while watching TV. Studies show that people who believe they are multitasking are actually switching back and forth between two tasks. You can’t text and drive; you either text or drive. Even when not life-threatening, the result is inefficient. Research has demonstrated that it leads to lower grades, including for students sitting near the multitasker. No Luddite, Lang advises against banning devices in favor of limiting their role, and he devotes an appendix to his personal “device policy.” He urges teachers to “make a fundamental shift in our thinking: away from preventing distraction and toward cultivating attention.” Humans are relentlessly curious, so a teacher who follows this approach has a decent chance of pulling student attention away from Instagram. We are built to pay attention to others, and a successful classroom is a community. The author shares many educational thinkers’ low opinion of grading, but he insists on some form of assessment, an irresistible strategy that focuses a student’s attention. Although aimed at educators, the book offers good lessons in psychology for the average reader. Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.


Library Journal
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Lang (English, Assumption Univ., MA; Small Teaching) combines theoretical analysis with practical tips on how to cultivate attention in the classroom. Basing his text on the premise that learning occurs in three steps—attending to a new concept, processing it, and being able to retrieve it—Lang demonstrates the interdependence of all three. Recent research sees digital devices as a major distraction for students. To create a balanced and blended learning environment, Lang says that students and teachers should work together on technology policies and goals. He supports his ideas by referring to the theories of Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi on flow and Edward Deci's work on self-determination, as well as others. He also provides real-world examples, including his own experiences and that of his colleagues and of his wife, Anne, a kindergarten teacher. Each chapter concludes with a "quick take," or ideas that teachers can apply. Lang wraps up the book by proposing that classrooms become "retreat spaces" from distraction, places that build communities to support and encourage attention and learning. VERDICT Every educator, from kindergarten teachers to graduate and undergraduate school teachers, struggles with reducing distraction in the classroom. Lang tackles this problem by offering strategies for students and constructive approaches and tools to encourage attentive behavior.—Jacqueline Snider, Toronto


Kirkus
Copyright © Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

A lucid discussion of attention and how to persuade students to pay it.A professor of English and director of the D'Amour Center for Teaching Excellence at Assumption University, Lang is addressing teachers, but he delivers advice with universal applications. Though modern technology usually receives the blame for restless, distracted students, its a problem as old as history. Socrates considered writing a malignant invention, a crutch that destroyed the ability to remember. The telegraph, the radio, the television, the computerbrought with them critics who argued that they were destroying our attention spans, writes the author, turning us into distractible creatures who could no longer focus on our work, our prayers, our study, or one another. Lang quickly shoots down the idea that modern students can effectively multitask. They cant, except when one task is trivial, such as folding clothes while watching TV. Studies show that people who believe they are multitasking are actually switching back and forth between two tasks. You cant text and drive; you either text or drive. Even when not life-threatening, the result is inefficient. Research has demonstrated that it leads to lower grades, including for students sitting near the multitasker. No Luddite, Lang advises against banning devices in favor of limiting their role, and he devotes an appendix to his personal device policy. He urges teachers to make a fundamental shift in our thinking: away from preventing distraction and toward cultivating attention. Humans are relentlessly curious, so a teacher who follows this approach has a decent chance of pulling student attention away from Instagram. We are built to pay attention to others, and a successful classroom is a community. The author shares many educational thinkers low opinion of grading, but he insists on some form of assessment, an irresistible strategy that focuses a students attention.Although aimed at educators, the book offers good lessons in psychology for the average reader. Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Back