Educators say digital tools used both inside the formal classroom and outside it in students’ personal lives are having a mixed impact on students’ academic and social development, according to two recent surveys.
For example, many teachers responded that the Internet and digital tools have had an overall positive impact on students’ research habits, while at the same time hurting students’ attention spans, according to a survey from the Pew Research Center’s Internet & American Life Project that examined students’ research habits.
Meanwhile, a separate study from Common Sense Media found many teachers believe entertainment media to be harmful to students’ overall academic and social development, while at the same time helping students learn how to find information quickly and manage multiple tasks at the same time.
