This was quite an interesting and illuminating assignment. Although I am very interested in learning about productivity techniques, I have never actually tracked my attention for an entire day. The pie chart below provides a quick overview of a day in late March 2023. To contextualise this specific day, it is important noting that I work from home and live alone. It came as no surprise to me when I reviewed the data that I spend the bulk of my day reading, whether at a desk, in my reading chair, or in a coffee shop. As a Ph.D. student my reading list is enormous, additionally, I am a voracious reader in my personal life as well. I was meticulously tracking my attention for each hour on that particular day, writing down notes on my computer, or my phone when I was on the move.

A day in the life...

Bathroom breaks and such aside, there is still a significant amount of time (18.9%) unaccounted for which I found intriguing. I don’t propose that we need to be productive at all times, quite the contrary. Time to think and reflect are vital parts of teaching and learning, and a ‘state of permanent alertness stifles reflection’ (Citton, 2017, p. 180), so perhaps what I really found intriguing about the 18.9% of unaccounted time is the fact that I didn’t think it necessary to write down the times when I did seemingly, nothing.

There are two hours that stand out to me (see Detailed Log). Two full hours of concentrated reading, one at 5 AM the other at 9 AM. This kind of focus has been called flow (Csikszentmihalyi, 1990) and provides an optimal experience of complete engagement and attention to a task at hand. In his conclusion, Citton (2017) calls this kind of attention to mean 'alienating yourself' (p. 178), making the point that being absorbed fully in a task, ultimately brings about an exit from another.

(What is noticeable is the fact that I was reading away from my computer, I had previously printed out the articles and used a pencil to scribble notes in the margins. The tactility of this method suits me. While I agree with de Castell & Jenson (2004) that students growing up with video games require more engaging learning materials, it is perhaps worth asking the question if more analog tools could provide students with an opportunity for focused attention.

In my current design course at Emily Carr University of Art + Design, I inform the students at the outset that there are three classes with no phones or computers. I have designed activities that involve moving around the school, interview potential users, and work with pen and paper. Although the students are initially skeptical, the feedback is consistently positive. With many students appreciating the concentration and not being distracted by other students' digital device usage in class.

As a teacher gaining my students attention is of the utmost importance. As I read about instructors expecting their students to concentrate on a single topic for a lengthy amount of time overlooking students’ preference to move swiftly between different tasks (Citton, 2017, p.10), I was again reminded that I am of a different generation than my students. My teaching style has been influenced by how I was educated. The text-bound educational world I come from, is not what my students are familiar with (de Castell & Jenson, 2004). As a result, it is vital that I understand the hyper-attention that my students are used to, as well as the multi-tasking they prefer.

I like to end with Cathy Davidson's notion on how partial attention of an individual might not be a negative thing like so many researchers believe. In her book "Now you see it" (2011) she writes about "attention blindness as the fundamental structuring principle of the brain" (p. 2) and that this might present us with opportunities for collaboration. Because we are not all paying attention to the same thing, working with others is crucial to thrive in a complex world.

Conclusion

References