The impact of digital distraction on lecture note taking and student learning

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The impact of digital distraction on lecture note taking and student learning Abraham E. Flanigan1   · Scott Titsworth2 Received: 23 August 2019 / Accepted: 6 June 2020 © Springer Nature B.V. 2020

Abstract Laptop computers allow students to type lecture notes instead of relying on the traditional longhand (i.e. paper–pencil) method. The present research compared laptop and longhand note-taking methods by investigating how the quality (i.e. complete versus incomplete idea units) and quantity (i.e. total words and total idea units) of typed and handwritten notes differed when students did or did not reply to text messages during a simulated lecture. Accounting for the presence of text messaging while participants took notes situated the present study within the reality facing many students in today’s digital age. Findings indicated that a considerable proportion of the idea units captured in participants’ notes were incomplete, regardless of note-taking method or exposure to distraction during the simulated lecture. However, only the total number of complete idea units stored in student notes meaningfully predicted lecture learning. Furthermore, the presence of digital distraction was particularly disruptive to the quality and quantity of laptop users’ lecture notes relative to longhand note takers. Finally, digital distraction emerged as a more meaningful predictor of lecture learning than note-taking method. Recommendations for improving the quality of student lecture notes are discussed and avenues for future research into notetaking completeness and the interplay between digital distraction and note-taking method are proposed. Keywords  Note-taking method · Digital distraction · Lectures · College students · Technology Note taking is one of the primary strategies college students use to learn in the classroom (Hartley and Marshall 1974; Morehead et al. 2019b; Kiewra 2002). Although most college students are never formally trained to take lecture notes (Morehead et  al. 2019b), nearly * Abraham E. Flanigan [email protected] Scott Titsworth [email protected] 1

Department of Curriculum, Foundations, and Reading, Georgia Southern University, 2104 College of Education Building, Statesboro, GA 30460, USA

2

Scripps College of Communication, Ohio University, Schoonover Center 111, Athens, OH 45701, USA



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all of them spontaneously take notes during class (Morehead et al. 2019b; Palmatier and Bennett 1974; Williams and Eggert 2002). Students are wise to take notes, as those who take and review lecture notes tend to have higher achievement on quizzes and exams than those who do not take notes (Armbruster 2000; Kiewra 1985; Knight and McKelvie 1986; Kobayashi 2005). Contemporary mobile technology has expanded the modalities through which students take notes. Students have traditionally taken notes using a longhand (e.g. pencil-paper) method, but the proliferation of laptop computers has allowed college students to type their notes during class (Ragan e