Multitasking a Good Idea?
Written by Thin Han
Edited by Janelle Nieva
Jan 31, 2021
Edited by Janelle Nieva
Jan 31, 2021
You tell yourself you are good at multitasking. You can watch lectures while scrolling through Twitter. You can do your readings with your favorite show blaring in the background. Sadly, the truth is that no one is a good multitasker, not even your straight A friend who watches lecture videos at 2x speed while playing Among Us. All those things are complex tasks that overwork the prefrontal cortex part of your brain, and, ultimately there is a steep price of having a bad impact on your learning. Doing a brain dump for your exams is fine for the time being, but what will you do if you have to take classes that build on the knowledge of prior classes, and you end up not remembering anything?
It is hard to look away in fear of “missing out”, especially given the current circumstances regarding politics and health. Amidst all the chaos, one important thing to have is an internal locus of control. This means remembering that you are in control of your own life, and it is within your means to earn the grade. Remembering to breathe and trying to do one task at a time are some steps toward maintaining that internal locus of control. Other steps involve minimizing distractions by doing things such as leaving the phone in another room or having time limits on social media apps. Another strategy to minimize distractions is using the Pomodoro technique, which involves a 5 minutes break in-between each time interval of working for 25 minutes. It’s also important to do some sort of daily or weekly exercise as it can improve both the general well-being and mental health. Trying to do these things can help you obtain and maintain your internal locus of control in order to achieve your goals.
Works Cited
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, New Bureau. Distracted learning a big problem,
golden opportunity for educators, students. ScienceDaily. ScienceDaily, 14 Oct. 2020.
<www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2020/10/201014140932.htm>
Image Source: "Adult Male Multitasking Concept Free Vector" by Pikisuperstar licensed under Freepik License