|
As higher ed faculty and staff contend with the seeming reduction of attention span and how an inability to sustain focus hampers learning, investigations are continuing to surface important factors and perspectives. One recent enlightening study was conducted by Maxi Heitmayer of Rowan University and Anna Götzfried at the London School of Economics. Writing in the New York Times last week, Dr. Heitmayer, an expert in attention economics, emphasizes that Gen Z'ers participating in the study indicated actively choosing mindless "brain rot" content when they were worn out by the cognitive and attention demands that social media had made on them. Consuming something meaningless was a choice to take some small bit of control over their attention and cognitive load — a "cry for help," as she put it, that indicates a need "to treat the infrastructure problem it lays bare."
Academic coaches may work with learners who say they don't know where their time goes but, as they talk, realize how much they scroll. They may also work with students who DO know they lose hours to social media but feel powerless to do anything about it. However, students do have some choices and agency. Coaches can:
- Help students understand that "brain rot" content scrolling is a symptom of overload, not a sign of weakness
- Ask students what guardrails they might put up against an app or a device itself, to reduce opportunity for external entities to demand their attention
- Encourage students to get curious about when and why they hit the wall and move to mindless content
- Based on what students indicate about such situations, encourage them to identify both proactive strategies to avoid them and reactive strategies if they find themselves in them
Coaches and coachees alike face an uphill battle — but fighting for focus and learning is worth it. Hone your ability to support students in this challenging time with a LifeBound training.
To learn more or explore which option is right for you, visit www.lifebound.com.
| 
