How Do Students and Teachers Respond to Digital Distraction in School?

Students and teachers’ responses to digital distraction fluctuate depending on context and variables, so it is not surprising that stakeholders’ reactions are somewhat dependent on whether learning is happening synchronously or asynchronously, and whether the learning setting is in-person or remote. It is no surprise that digital distraction is having a major impact on academic performance (Ravizza et al., Computers & Education, 78, 109–114, 2014; Redner et al., Behavior Analysis: Research and Practice, https://doi.org/10.1037/bar0000158 , 2019), but what is more concerning is how students, parents, teachers, and administrators are choosing to respond to digital distraction when students are learning and teachers are instructing. The idea of complete mitigation of digital distraction inside school, whether school is happening remotely or in-person, is not feasible, but choices regarding the minimization of digital distraction are far from where they need to be. Educating our student generation, a group of digital natives born into Web 2.0 technology, about the pitfalls of digital distraction and its effects on metacognition is a good starting point. Reinforcing these digital concerns with ongoing and targeted professional development for teachers and staff, coupled with meaningful digital policy across school districts, has to become the gold standard.