Students sit in front of computers as early as second grade, the same age they should be developing the skill of socializing and interacting with their peers. Collaborating is a key factor in developing a student’s skills as it requires a different level of thinking.
Writing by hand on a piece of paper is proven to be better for learning as it is one of the most effective ways to study and retain information.
“I am a believer in the research that says that when you physically write things, it is more easily stored in your memory,” teacher Wesley Vanhooser said.
Almost every student experiences the strain of switching between online and paper assignments. Some teachers may assign work that requires students to read an article and answer questions on a different site which may be challenging to navigate back and forth for some.
“Your computer screens are so small. I feel bad having you like type and use a resource at the same time,” teacher Kaitlin Coleman said.
Senior Charles Long-Scott believes that depending on who you are, online assignments are known for becoming a distraction with easy access to other websites such as online games. He emphasizes that this is the direct result of assigning adolescents online work. It has, in fact, been found to be the second most distracting source to a student’s learning.
Although distraction is subjective to the individual, technology comes with tools that could be used to help students. One positive of online work pointed out was the reminder of a due date.
“I also get that marking of like, oh, it’s missing, or you have to do it by this date,” senior Kali Crandall said.
With the clear increase of online assignments, some wonder if it is a teacher’s easy way out. Technology has come so far to the point where there is an option for teachers to have grading completed for them. Although some teachers may choose not to use this capability, there is an option that is provided to teachers allowing for AI to do an initial assessment of work based on the rubric given.
“My job is a lot if you’re doing worksheets all the time, yeah, a lot more than online. It like kind of just grades it, and all you have to do is transfer the score into Skyward,” teacher Kaleb Allinson said.
The majority of the people interviewed leaned towards paper assignments being better overall. It begs the question of why do teachers assign constant online work knowing students engage better with paper assignments which leads them to learn successfully.
There is no set “correct” way to teach as everyone learns differently, so what is the solution?
Teachers should do what they believe will make their students most successful. With most students seeing benefit within writing by hand, teachers need to recognize this, and truly put in the effort to engage their class.
