Students who believe Facebook distracts them from schoolwork may have little to fear.
A recent study conducted by psychologist Reynol Junco and published in Computers in Human Behavior shows that “time spent on Facebook is a strong negative predictor of overall college GPA.”
In 2009 and 2010, Pew Research Center’s Internet and American Life project reported that between 67 and 75 percent of college-aged individuals spend time on online social networking sites.
Students spend an average of 106 minutes on Facebook every day.
Junco’s study, however, found that only significant increases in time spent on Facebook correlate to lower GPAs. In addition, he discovered that “frequency of checking to see what friends are up to and sharing links [was] positively predictive of overall GPA, while frequency of posting status updates was negatively predictive.”
Junco also found that the act of checking Facebook was unrelated to the amount of time students spent preparing for class.
Despite the prevalence of social media over the past few years, Associate Dean of the College Kent Peterman, says he has seen a “slow but persistent creeping up of GPAs in the 20 years [he has] been at Penn.”
Some Penn professors agree that Facebook usage does not tend to have a significant impact on a student’s work.
“Before there were laptops, there were other distractions out there,” said David Barnes, associate professor and director of the Health & Societies Program. “Students either find time to work or they don’t.” Jonathan Moreno, interim undergraduate chairman of the Science, Technology and Society Program, built on the sentiment.
“In my experience, I haven’t seen students addicted to it in such a way that it would affect their work. Good students know how to manage these things.”
In spite of these beliefs, several professors do forbid students from using their laptops in the classroom.
“I do think it’s a total distraction if people are allowed to go online during class,” Communications professor Joseph Turow said. “We have to get away from this notion that at every moment we need to be connected.”
“I feel like a dictator when I’m doing it, and I know students find it really frustrating,” Barnes said.
Health and Societies assistant professor Beth Linker recalls her experience as a teaching assistant at Yale University, when she first saw “students multi-tasking in the lecture hall” on their laptops. She now bans laptops in her classes at Penn.
“I think those students were appreciative of it in a way,” Linker said. “I don’t think anything was lost by them not having laptops. It’s not about the grades for me, it’s about the learning experience in the classroom.”
College sophomore Arianne Taormina said she found her laptop so distracting that she no longer brings it to class. While she admitted that Facebook provides a tempting diversion from work, she also believes in its value to “keep in touch with people from high school and summer classes.”
Many professors and students alike shared the view that Facebook could easily be replaced by another distraction.
Engineering sophomore Kelsey Brongo has used SelfControl, an application that allows users to block access to certain websites for a predetermined amount of time.
“I always end up finding something to procrastinate with,” she said, adding that she would access Facebook through her phone or check out other websites.
“Facebook just happens to be an especially alluring temptation,” Barnes added.
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