How to Focus for Learning: Difference between revisions

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== Active Learning ==
== Active Learning ==
The type of teaching method can affect learning.  Research has shown that active learning (group discussions, pair) produces superior results from lecture-only teaching.  Proponents of active learning believe that this method provides opportunities for exploration, confusion and resolution that directly leads to enhanced student learning.  Another advantage to this method of learning is that it increases social interactions among students which may result in increased social networks leading to potential out-of-class learning.<ref name=":0" />
The type of teaching method can affect learning.  Research has shown that active learning (group discussions, pair) produces superior results from lecture-only teaching.  Proponents of active learning believe that this method provides opportunities for exploration, confusion and resolution that directly leads to enhanced student learning.  Another advantage to this method of learning is that it increases social interactions among students which may result in increased social networks leading to potential out-of-class learning.<ref name=":0">Keller AS, Davidesco I, Tanner KD. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8711818/ Attention matters: How orchestrating attention may relate to classroom learning]. CBE—Life Sciences Education. 2020;19(3):fe5.</ref>


== Environment ==
== Environment ==
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<nowiki>**</nowiki> The only time true multitasking can work is if both tasks are very simple and do not compete for the same mental resource. <ref name=":2" />  
<nowiki>**</nowiki> The only time true multitasking can work is if both tasks are very simple and do not compete for the same mental resource. <ref name=":2" />  


== Types of attention ==
== Attention ==
There are two types of attention that occur in the classroom setting at all time; external and internal attention.  External attention refers to the instructors voice while internal attention denotes connecting new material to prior knowledge.<ref name=":0">Keller AS, Davidesco I, Tanner KD. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8711818/ Attention matters: How orchestrating attention may relate to classroom learning]. CBE—Life Sciences Education. 2020;19(3):fe5.</ref>
There are five categories of attention:


=== External Attention ===
# ''Focused attention: refers to an individual’s ability to directly respond to specific visual, auditory, or tactile stimuli. Sohlberg and Mateer asserted that focused attention impairment typically occurs in the early stages of recuperation from a coma for patients who sustained brain injury and that focused attention is often the earliest recovered attentional function for such patients.''
External attention or perceptual attention expresses the selection and modulating of sensory information. When using external attention, the brain has a way of signifying relevant information while suppressing irrelevant information. This form of attention allows us to gain new sensory information from the environment.
# ''Sustained attention is the ability to maintain consistent behavioral responses during continuous or repetitive activities. Individuals who experience impairment in this attentional dimension can only focus transiently on a task or maintain a response for several seconds or minutes. They may also exhibit dramatic fluctuation in sustained attention over a short period of time.''
# ''Selective attention is an individual’s ability to maintain a behavior or cognitive set when faced with distractions or competing stimuli. Patients deficient in this attentional component can be easily distracted by stimuli that are irrelevant to their original task. These irrelevant stimuli generally include various types of external distractions (stimuli from the external environment such as scenery, sounds, or activity) or internal distractions (an individual’s internal worries, thoughts, or contemplations of personal importance to the individual). Clinically, patients with selective attention deficiency often cannot undergo therapy in a place with other stimuli present''
# ''Alternating attention is an individual’s ability to change the focus of attention and the mental flexibility to shift between tasks with different cognitive requirements. Patients with alternating attention deficiency have difficulty changing from a familiar stimulus–response model. They often require extra prompts to cope with changes of task. This attentional dimension is critical for students, such as when shifting between listening to lectures and writing notes. The cognitive requirements for the two tasks are different. Therefore, students must rely on their mental flexibility to effectively alternate their attention.''
# ''Divided attention is an individual’s ability to simultaneously respond to multiple tasks. Individuals engaged in divided attention handle tasks simultaneously across multiple stimuli (e.g., listening to the radio while driving or talking to others while preparing a meal). Under these circumstances, the individual must execute alternating attention rapidly and continuously or rely on subconscious automated procedures to manage one of multiple tasks.<ref>Lai YJ, Chang KM. [https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7370093/ Improvement of attention in elementary school students through fixation focus training activity]. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020 Jul;17(13):4780.</ref>''


=== Internal Attention ===
Internal attention conveys selecting and modulating internally generated information (memory).  This form of attention helps us process information even without sensory stimuli.<ref name=":0" />


=== ''On-Topic External Attention'' ===
More attention
''When you notice a student with eye gaze locked on your PowerPoint slides, nodding occasionally, posture maintained, you may feel a sense of relief and assume that this student is clearly “paying attention” in the colloquial sense. One might assume that this student is the most engaged and the most likely to retain the information being conveyed, as he or she portrays the ways we have been socialized to show that we are engaged. Certainly, by focusing eye gaze on slides and listening actively to an instructor’s voice, one might maximize the brain’s ability to take in new information. But is it always the case that this is most beneficial for learning? Perhaps our assumption that eye contact is a natural and comfortable way to engage attentively does not hold for all students equally.<ref name=":0" />''


''Cognitive science research on memory and attention suggests that diligently going through lecture slides and rereading material over and over the night before an exam may allow for short-term recall but does not foster long-term memory or understanding (Capeda et al., 2006). Instead, deeper processing of the material, tying new material to prior knowledge, and actively retrieving information from memory seem to be more effective for long-term learning. Perhaps, then, external on-topic attention in the classroom is necessary but not sufficient for effective learning. This may provide some explanation for why lecture yields inferior learning compared with even the most modest active-learning approaches (Freeman et al., 2014). If so, then it makes sense to balance out pedagogical techniques that emphasize external attention (lecture slides, videos, etc.) with other techniques, as discussed in the section On-Topic Internal Attention.<ref name=":0" />''
sustained attention is an elementary cognitive function that underlies more complex forms of attention, such as divided or selective attention, and other cognitive domains, such as memory and learning
 
=== ''On-Topic Internal Attention'' ===
''Thinking beyond the idea of “paying attention” and trying to understand, in particular, what students are “paying attention to” may allow us to better conceptualize what is happening in students’ brains during a class session as they form complex networks of understanding. When a student’s gaze drifts away from the lecture slides, it is not necessarily the case that the students’ attention is now off-topic. On the contrary, it seems likely that moments of prompted quiet thinking time are beneficial for learning (Owens et al., 2017).<ref name=":0" />''
 
''Evidence supporting this idea comes readily from research demonstrating the utility of active-learning practices in the classroom (Tanner, 2013; Johnson et al., 1991, 1998; Goodwin et al., 1991), particularly those that allow students a chance to think, digest new information, identify their confusions, or connect new concepts with what is already known. For example, the “think” phase of a think–pair–share activity is likely crucial to allow students to contemplate the question at hand before discussing with their colleagues. These forms of on-topic, internally focused attention are perhaps just as important for learning as on-topic, externally focused attention. Additionally, on-topic internal attention can allow students the chance to practice metacognition, that is, reflecting on their own thinking and learning (Tanner, 2012).<ref name=":0" />''
 
=== ''Off-Topic External Attention'' ===
''A clock ticks, a pencil taps, a truck starts blaring its backup signal outside. All sorts of external stimuli can grab our attention automatically, often beyond our ability to control it. Amid so many possible distractions, it is actually astonishing that our brains are able to maintain focus on goal-relevant information (e.g., listening to an instructor’s voice). Usefully, this ability to focus does not prevent us from noticing the sudden appearance of potentially threatening information. The classic example used is that of a hunter-gatherer searching for tiny berries in a bush. To survive effectively, the searcher must maintain sharp focus on the goal-relevant information (round red objects) but not so focused that they do not notice the preying tiger. For students in a classroom, the threat of tigers may not be so dire, but sudden noises or changes in environmental stimuli could be indicative of useful information that is worth a shift in attention.<ref name=":0" />''
 
''Recent work shows that four times every second our brains shift between a state of sharp focus and a state of broad awareness of our surroundings (Fiebelkorn et al., 2018; Fiebelkorn and Kastner, 2019). We obviously do not consciously switch our attention to new external stimuli that frequently, but our brains do seem to give us the option to switch attention that often, a capability that likely evolved under evolutionary pressures to stay alert while maintaining what feels to us like continuous, steady focus. In the classroom, there may be ways that we can optimize on-topic attention by continuously drawing attention back to the material when distractions arise (for more on shifting attention, see How Instructors May Leverage Attention).<ref name=":0" />''
 
=== ''Off-Topic Internal Attention'' ===
''Similarly to how loud noises can draw our attention externally, salient internal experiences can draw attention internally. Suppose a student has a family member in the hospital for surgery today. As much as the student tries to volitionally direct attention toward a lecture slide or worksheet, the student’s attention may be drawn back to the topic of his or her family member repeatedly over the course of the class session. Sometimes, off-topic thoughts, worries, or ruminations take priority over on-topic information, and our brains are well adapted to redirect our focus toward those high-priority thoughts. Maybe the student who appears to be “zoning out” is actually rehearsing material for another course, or stressed about an exam next period. Off-topic, internal attention can come from many sources and can be difficult to identify or act upon.<ref name=":0" />''
 
''As noted before, mind-wandering makes up a substantial part of our day-to-day lives. Off-topic mind-wandering may sometimes be distracting, resulting in poorer task performance, decreased learning, lower grade point average, poorer memory for lecture material, and less motivation to learn (Risko et al., 2012; Randall et al., 2014; Wammes et al., 2016; Unsworth and McMillan, 2017). However, off-topic mind-wandering could potentially provide a useful source of material for more creative thinking and reflection, perhaps allowing students to bring new ideas and perspectives to the topic at hand. It is important to note that studies have investigated both intentional and unintentional mind-wandering (Robison et al., 2020), because these off-topic thoughts may not always be under conscious control. By understanding the ubiquity of mind-wandering in the classroom, one can think more carefully about the many possible ways to guide students’ attention in the classroom, as discussed in How Instructors May Leverage Attention.<ref name=":0" />''
 
''One well-documented source of impaired performance in the classroom (Shih et al., 1999) is stereotype threat, which occurs when one is at risk of confirming a negative stereotype about one’s social group (Steele and Aronson, 1995). Recent theories have posited that stereotype threat yields under performance by sapping working memory resources. Put another way, stereotype threat may redirect internal attention from on-topic (considering the material) to off-topic (considering one’s identity, abilities, and social environment), making it more challenging to perform the task at hand (Pennington et al., 2016). By understanding the ways that implicit or explicit biases can affect students’ attention, we can develop better strategies for reducing these influences.<ref name=":0" />''


== References ==
== References ==

Revision as of 01:43, 7 July 2023

Introduction[edit | edit source]

Keeping attention refers to a focusing activity and a state of mental alertness. Once in that state, the mind does not engage in unnecessary details. The individual can learn and choose information. Attention is a catalyst to initiate learning.[1]

Research has shown that people who have a high ability to focus share the characteristics of thinking critically and creatively. However, it is not always feasible to be aware of everything at the same time. This is especially true in the school setting where students need to focus on various ways the speed and information of material is presented. In order for students have to be able to see the main issue in a problem, understand the problem and to develop ideas they need to be focused.

Student will expend a high amount of cognitive effort to keep their attention for a long period of time. Part of keeping focused means preventing distractions from taking their attention away from the learning process. This can be particularly hard in a digital world. The more attention and focus on learning, the greater the knowledge will be. In addition, increased concentration during the learning process leads to a decreased chance of losing or forgetting the presented material. [1]

Active Learning[edit | edit source]

The type of teaching method can affect learning. Research has shown that active learning (group discussions, pair) produces superior results from lecture-only teaching. Proponents of active learning believe that this method provides opportunities for exploration, confusion and resolution that directly leads to enhanced student learning. Another advantage to this method of learning is that it increases social interactions among students which may result in increased social networks leading to potential out-of-class learning.[2]

Environment[edit | edit source]

The efficiency of learning can be affected by the environment or atmosphere. To have a conductive learning environment, the learning place should be quiet and not easily disturbed by external stimuli. However, even under the best conditions, the individual themselves can find their mind wandering to other things other than learning. Setting up a conducive environment is has been proven as a positive factor to affect concentration. Increased concentration leads to increased learning.

An effective learning environment comprises:

  • condition of school buildings
  • teacher-student relationships
  • student facilitaties
  • upright seating (not a reclined seat)
  • quiet atmosphere
  • right amount of students per room (not too crowded)[3]

Technology and Learning[edit | edit source]

Information can be accessed anywhere, anytime now with the emergence of technology and mobile devices. Many scholars believe that there is a negative impact on students capacity to learn, understand and interact with each other as a result of easy information accessibility. Attention is one key factor that has been negatively influenced by technology. [4]

Multitasking[edit | edit source]

Multi-tasking sometimes referred to as switch-tasking or task-switching is when an individual attempts to do multiple attention-requiring tasks at the same time. For students, multitasking or distracted learning promotes negative outcomes. Multi-learning tasks will take students longer due to the reasons below:

  1. they will need to refamiliarise themselves with the assignment
  2. switching back and forth between tasks causes mental fatigue
  3. long term retention is impaired if their attention is divided during the encoding process,
  4. the brain processes information different during distracted learning that is less useful[5]

** The only time true multitasking can work is if both tasks are very simple and do not compete for the same mental resource. [5]

Attention[edit | edit source]

There are five categories of attention:

  1. Focused attention: refers to an individual’s ability to directly respond to specific visual, auditory, or tactile stimuli. Sohlberg and Mateer asserted that focused attention impairment typically occurs in the early stages of recuperation from a coma for patients who sustained brain injury and that focused attention is often the earliest recovered attentional function for such patients.
  2. Sustained attention is the ability to maintain consistent behavioral responses during continuous or repetitive activities. Individuals who experience impairment in this attentional dimension can only focus transiently on a task or maintain a response for several seconds or minutes. They may also exhibit dramatic fluctuation in sustained attention over a short period of time.
  3. Selective attention is an individual’s ability to maintain a behavior or cognitive set when faced with distractions or competing stimuli. Patients deficient in this attentional component can be easily distracted by stimuli that are irrelevant to their original task. These irrelevant stimuli generally include various types of external distractions (stimuli from the external environment such as scenery, sounds, or activity) or internal distractions (an individual’s internal worries, thoughts, or contemplations of personal importance to the individual). Clinically, patients with selective attention deficiency often cannot undergo therapy in a place with other stimuli present
  4. Alternating attention is an individual’s ability to change the focus of attention and the mental flexibility to shift between tasks with different cognitive requirements. Patients with alternating attention deficiency have difficulty changing from a familiar stimulus–response model. They often require extra prompts to cope with changes of task. This attentional dimension is critical for students, such as when shifting between listening to lectures and writing notes. The cognitive requirements for the two tasks are different. Therefore, students must rely on their mental flexibility to effectively alternate their attention.
  5. Divided attention is an individual’s ability to simultaneously respond to multiple tasks. Individuals engaged in divided attention handle tasks simultaneously across multiple stimuli (e.g., listening to the radio while driving or talking to others while preparing a meal). Under these circumstances, the individual must execute alternating attention rapidly and continuously or rely on subconscious automated procedures to manage one of multiple tasks.[6]


More attention

sustained attention is an elementary cognitive function that underlies more complex forms of attention, such as divided or selective attention, and other cognitive domains, such as memory and learning

References[edit | edit source]

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Cicekci MA, Sadik F. Teachers' and Students' Opinions about Students' Attention Problems during the Lesson. Journal of Education and Learning. 2019;8(6):15-30.
  2. ↑ Keller AS, Davidesco I, Tanner KD. Attention matters: How orchestrating attention may relate to classroom learning. CBE—Life Sciences Education. 2020;19(3):fe5.
  3. ↑ Simbolon P, Simbolon N. Learning Environment with the Learning Concentration on Students. InProceeding International Conference on Religion, Science and Education 2022 Feb 22 (Vol. 1, pp. 109-115).
  4. ↑ Lodge JM, Harrison WJ. Focus: Attention science: The role of attention in learning in the digital age. The Yale journal of biology and medicine. 2019 Mar;92(1):21.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Schmidt SJ. Distracted learning: Big problem and golden opportunity. Journal of Food Science Education. 2020 Oct;19(4):278-91.
  6. ↑ Lai YJ, Chang KM. Improvement of attention in elementary school students through fixation focus training activity. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2020 Jul;17(13):4780.
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