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> If you're stuck in a room and the only thing you can do is read a math textbook you are going to do it. I would literally doodle, stare out a window, zone ou
by lemoncookiechip 2y ago
> If you're stuck in a room and the only thing you can do is read a math textbook you are going to do it.
I would literally doodle, stare out a window, zone out daydreaming, or anything else other than read a textbook I didn't want to read for one reason or another, or pay attention to a teacher for that matter.
Yes, it is anecdotal, but I'm sure we've all been children before, and even if you didn't do it, people around you surely did if you paid any attention. For god sake, I remember my classmates just using a lighter on small patches of whiteout ink during one specific class because of how bored they were. Extreme example? Yes. But passing papers, making paper planes, and other crafts, literally anything to pass the time.
This isn't exclusive to children either. If an adult doesn't want to do something, they might very well not unless forced to, and even then.
Btw, I'm not trying to argue about banning or not banning a phone, this is specifically about the statement above.
EDIT: I should probably mention that this isn't a 5min thing, I could easily zone a teacher out for 45min-90min blocks if I didn't care about what they had to say, much less a book I didn't want to read.
- croes 2y agoI think it about probabilities. A smartphone is a guaranteed distraction because of what you can do with it. No smartphone doesn't guarantee you read the book, but the chances are higher.
- beowulfey 2y agoYes, exactly right. And there are many students less likely than that to zone out, and many more likely to zone out. But if you give them a tool to aid in being distracted, it will encourage all of them to not pay attention. It really is a question of likelihood
- sheepscreek 2y agoThis. With a phone handy, it’s tempting them into not paying attention, at the very least. The best of intentions can be undone by poor or misaligned incentives. And a phone (and a computer to a lesser extent) provides us with the incentive (easy access) to procrastinate indefinitely. Those of us with a limited will power stand no chance.
- _qbxi 2y ago> I would literally doodle, stare out a window, zone out daydreaming, or anything else other than read a textbook I didn't want to read for one reason or another, or pay attention to a teacher for that matter. Being bored allows for creativity and problem-solving. You might not do well at that specific subject (eg, math if you never pay attention in math class). But you might do something with some other area of your life. Constant distraction/consumption means never doing anything of value.
- swasheck 2y agoagree wholeheartedly. boredom is a catalyst for creativity and introspection yet we treat it as anathema - something to be artificially avoided at all cost.