elearnspace

Multitasking as a concept is being called into question (well, it has been called into question for several years, but the commentary is moving mainstream). The Myth of Multitasking is the most recent article on the subject. Research on this front – like with so-called millennial learners – is still in the early stages and we’ll continue to see reports both validating and denying the concept. John Medina at BrainRules offers a short discussion on the error of multitasking. I personally, will continue to enjoy my high rate of distractedness and continuous partial attention as I email, blog, search, listen to podcasts, etc. Quite simply: most things I encounter on a daily basis aren’t important enough to warrant full undivided attention. When these moments arise, however, I focus and discontinue multitasking (or task switching). I wonder if the criticism of multitasking isn’t partly misplaced…i.e. perhaps we just have much more noise in our world today (video games, TV, podcasts, blogs, youtube) and the key task is one of knowing when to experience multiple information sources and when to focus.