Read the text and answer the questions(do not forget full stops!): It’s 7:30 pm at Lisa’s house and…
Read the text and answer the questions(do not forget full stops!):
It’s 7:30 pm at Lisa’s house and she’s in her room doing her homework. However, homework is just one of the things she’s doing while her eyes are fixed on the computer screen. As well as studying for her Biology exam, Lisa is also listening to music, chatting with her best friend online, downloading songs and occasionally texting people on her mobile phone. «My parents keep telling me off for multi-tasking while studying, but they don’t understand that it helps me concentrate,» she says.
It’s not unusual for human beings to do several things at the same time but in our fast-paced technological society, the situation has come to a head. Young people today spend nearly 6 1/2 hours a day using various types of media, doing different things at the same time. This is the reason why they are called the multi-tasking generation, or Generation M. But how do their brains deal with multitasking? Automatic actions like walking and chatting on the phone can be done at the same time, but when it comes to learning new information, multi-tasking has a bad impact
«Multi-tasking affects how you learn in a negative way,» says Russell Poldrack, Associate Professor of Psychology at UCLA. Dividing your attention between too many activities makes the knowledge you gain harder to use later on The researchers are not saying you shouldn’t multi-task, just don’t multi-task while you are trying to 25 learn something new.
According to specialists, it is also essential to take time away from electronic media. «At the sound of the bell, all my students reach into their bags and grab their mobile phones to text message their friends. It is as if they’re 30 afraid of silence,» says Casey Roberts, a secondary school teacher. «Their MP3 players, laptops and games consoles have become extensions of themselves. I really think that Generation M should take time to relax and reflect. There’s life beyond the screen and the pleasure of face-to- 35 face communication can be neither denied nor replaced».
What is Lisa doing at 7.30 pm?
What things is Lisa doing while she is doing her homework?
What does multi-tasking help Lisa in?
How much time a day do young people spend using different types of media?
When does multi-tasking have a bad impact ?
What is the result of dividing the attention between too many activities?
What do the students do at the sound of the bell?
What has become extensions of young people nowadays?
What can be neither denied or replaced?
I like the idea of having a challenging job that will enable me to use my …, to do something better for the people and for the society.
Later this year, sixteen-year-old Kayla Heard will become the youngest graduate from Washington State University. Kayla, who could talk when she was one, graduated from high school when she was ten. However, now she studies at home, where she accesses her social sciences course through WSU Online.
Hard-working Kayla, whose parents felt it wouldn’t be good to send her to a university while she was still very young, is grateful for the opportunity to study at home. “I want to continue my education online because of the convenience,” Kayla says. “And, in my view, the classes online are slightly more challenging than the ones at university. Later on, I plan to get a Master’s degree when I’m working, so I can get some classroom experience at that time, if necessary.”
Kayla’s mother Marlyn, who knew Kayla was different at an early age, says, “When she was a baby, she respected paper. She didn’t tear it up, which is quite unusual. She looked at the pictures or writing on it, as if she wanted to know what it said. on the other hand, when my son was a baby, he put the paper in his mouth!”
Kayla has already passed the law school entry test, so she is going to spend the summer applying to different law schools. Kayla, who enjoys travelling and learning about foreign cultures, says she’s interested in doing an online course in international law. She also says she wants to work abroad, possibly in Asia.