There has been a debate about whether AirPods have little or low effects, or if they support attention span for students. Based on studies, people typically work for 20% longer when listening to music. However, some teachers say that AirPods take away 50% of the students’ attention as they use half their brain to listen to the lyrics; some teachers only allow music without lyrics.
With these, there is a lot of controversy, so we asked some teachers about their opinion on this topic.
In the view of Zaharris: “Students should take out their AirPods if the teacher is trying to say something important. Other than that, I think having AirPods in is fine.”
In my personal opinion, people should be allowed to wear AirPods in class. This excludes during tests, exams, quizzes, and other major things that teachers have to be careful about cheating. If they are unable to listen to what the teacher is saying – and struggle in school because of that – then that is their own problem. Students should learn for themselves what works best for them when it comes to managing their attention and productivity during class instead of the worse scenario being assumed – like cheating.
An opposing view of this was made by 9th grader Isabella Chapa Diaz who said, “If it’s a really really really important thing the teacher is talking about then at that point just take it out because its only going to be like 5 min. Ya, like I don’t really think they will be talking for the whole class period; I mean who does that?” Most teachers seem to agree that students should be able to use AirPods during class, except for times when the teacher is sharing critical information or administering important assessments.
Rather than teachers all having different views there should be a middle ground. The only exceptions should be classes such as woodshop where people need to pay attention to smaller details and not paying attention can result in an injury.
In conclusion, although there is a lot of controversy and a lot of debate on this topic I believe teachers should all reach a middle ground and agree on the rules for AirPod use so students aren’t confused. Although AirPods should not be used during tests or quizzes – no matter the class or the teacher – I still believe they should be allowed during instructional time so that students figure out by themselves if they can work with AirPods in.