Homework or Facebook? Maybe a little of both.

How many of you study or do homework with Facebook open on another tab? Chat? Maybe the iPod is on shuffle, or the TV is on. Are these distracting or helping your focus? Many of you try to convince me, at one time or another, that music "helps me concentrate." Look, I will openly admit if my computer is on, Facebook is open on one tab in my browser 90% of the time.  I also usually have about 15 games of Scrabble going at once, and when my iPhone gives me the familiar notification, my attention is directed to my next move.  Question:  Does multi-tasking with technology help or hurt?

Read this interesting article about a middle school teacher who put his eighth graders to the test:  Test of middle-school students shows learning, iPods don't mix.