Show Me the Research!
It is so important for teachers to stay up to date on educational research. As educators we need to know what the latest trends are and how to best meet the needs of our students. Without staying up to date on research, it is kind of like going into your classroom blind. Research gives us such a deeper understanding of what our students need and why.
What Are the Stats Saying?
There are so many things that influence our students and how they learn in the classroom. According to McCrindle, “Almost half of Gen Z turn to TikTok (48%) and Instagram (46%) to teach themselves new things daily” (McCrindle, 2023). This statistic spoke to me for a variety of reasons. The first being that that the stat is showing almost half of this generation uses these apps to teach themselves things. It makes me wonder what else are they using to learn things? What is the other 52% using to teach themselves things? Another reason this statistics spoke to me is it is focused on Gen Z. My students would be considered Generation Alpha as they were born in 2014 and 2015. I can only assume that these percentages would increase for younger generations. These kids rely on TikTok for everything. As we all know, Tik Tok and Instagram Reels are usually shorter videos that are not more than a few minutes. They are videos that get right to the point, keep you entertained, and are short enough to hold your attention. Something I have noticed with my students is that they need constant change in activity. We cannot remain on the same task for too long before they get antsy. Now I know part of this is simply because they are kids. However, I think this statistic also plays a part in it. Kids are so used to being able to watch Tik Tok videos or Instagram reels to learn something and feel satisfied in a few minutes to move on to the next video. A typical school day is not like that. Students have to stay on a certain task for a whole class period which can be twenty to thirty minutes at a time. When the assignment isn’t holding their attention anymore, I watch students give up or get lazy with their work. This challenges us as teachers to find assignments and tasks that will hold student engagement and keep them interested like a short Tik Tok video would.
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| Source: Common Sense Media |
This next statistic I feel goes hand in hand with the previous. Common Sense Media shared "Close to half say that using
social media takes time away from other activities they care
about (46%) and has reduced their attention span or ability to
concentrate (46%)" (Common Sense, 2024). Kids are relying on social media to entertain themselves. They realize it is affecting their concentration. They constantly want to be checking their phone to see what's the latest thing going on. This is something I clearly see impact student attention in school, even in fourth grade. Common sense also shared, 76% of students aged 18 to 22 reach for social media when they are bored. While 68% of students age 14 to 17 reach for social media when they are board. In conclusion, kids are relying on social media to entertain them when they are bored. I remember when I was kid and I was bored I would read a book, go hang out with my friends, go to the mall. I would find something to do. Kids today don't know how to be bored because they always have access to something that will entertain them at their fingertips. Even in fourth grade it is apparent students rely on social media and/or technology to entertain them when they are bored. When there is any sort of down time in my class students don't know what to do with themselves. I have students fidgeting. They are up and walking around. This forces me to make sure there is little to no down time in between any activity or lesson. However that is not realistic. In my last years fourth grade class, something we worked on all year was quick transitions so there was no need for any downtime. My current class is slowly working on that as we are approaching the second quarter. These statistics allow us to see the "why" behind why students may be doing certain things in the classroom. It allows us to better understand what we need to do as educators to support our students with these issues. It's also comforting to realize, you are not alone and based on percentages majority of other teachers are probably going through the same things you are in your classroom.
Hi Ashley! I love that you started this discussion off with the perctange of students who get their information from the internet and asked the question of what else might they be doing on the internet that we do not know about. I agree students now a days have a hard time paying attention for a long enough time to even learn anything. Kids definitely rely on social media to keep themselves entertained and we need to figure out a way to use this in our teaching. The statistics that you found for how much students reach for their phones when they are bored is wild! 76% is huge!! I can't believe it. Thank you so much for sharing.
ReplyDeleteHello Ashley!
ReplyDeleteFirst off, I love the design/font of your blog. I understand the challenges teachers have nowadays with keeping their students' attention. Technology is such a wonderful tool, yet I believe it has harmful effects on society and our kids. Back in the day, kids were riding their bikes outside, playing tag and pickup games of baseball. I loved being outside as a kid finding things to do. Kids are too dependent on their devices. I agree that the attention spans of children are impaired because of TikTok. Life isn't 20 second videos. As Gen Z and Alpha grow into adulthood, I wonder if they will be able to handle the real-world. I applaud you for working on transitions in your lessons and being self-aware of this issue.
Hey Ashley,
ReplyDeleteI also feel challenged as an educator figuring out what difficulties with attending are age/development related and which relate to neurodiversity and which might be created by external factors. It's already difficult enough to refocus them after the multitude of planned transitions that are necessary (lunch, recess, special classes, bathroom breaks, etc.). The fact that they are in a strange area of awareness when drifting to social media makes it so much harder! They clearly know it's a problem overall, but as one of many adults who has opened my phone to look at something without realizing it, that awareness is hard to come by in the moment.
This struggle reminded me of a recent Freakonomics podcast episode about the myth of multitasking and how many of us are hurt by thinking we can do more than one thing at once without any cost. (https://freakonomics.com/podcast/multitasking-doesnt-work-so-why-do-we-keep-trying/)
Hi Ashley,
ReplyDeleteI really enjoyed your blog. I really like that you approached this topic without judgement. Using this data to support rather than shame your students is something that I feel like the majority of adults really need to consider doing. Generational differences are just a fact and as educators, in whatever form that is, we just need to help these students learn however best suits them. I love how you are trying to do this for your students, I am sure they will look back and appreciate your efforts.
Technology is such a double-edge sword for teachers today. On the one hand, you now have almost unlimited access to resources that can help teach concepts to kids. That's amazing. But to your point, the technology has made it so kids can't focus for long stretches of time in school.
ReplyDelete