The Huffington Post – Jacqueline Howard
“We all know smartphones can serve up valuable information in mere seconds. And for that reason, many students use them as learning tools to aid with schoolwork — for example, to perform mathematical calculations or review the course syllabus. But disturbing new research suggests that these ubiquitous mobile devices come with a big downside…”We were surprised — given the enthusiasm with which the students anticipated the potential benefits of the iPhone at the beginning of the study, and the fact that they had a basic understanding of the kinds of things that smartphones could do,” Dr Philip Kortum, the study’s lead author and faculty member in the psychology department at Rice University in Texas, told The Huffington Post in an email. “It was surprising that the anticipated benefits didn’t materialize.”…The researchers concluded that making technology available to students doesn’t necessarily enhance learning outcomes.”(more)