jenjoseph232
Based on the conclusion #3, why did the author made you want to…
Based on the conclusion #3, why did the author made you want to keep reading? Explain why. (Not because you just so happen to personally find their topic interesting. Instead, base this off of the strategies they used.)
Conclusion #3
Something to Chew on: An Examination of Educators’ Ability to Teach Self-Control as a
Means of Regulating the Use of Mobile Devices
The soft cylinder of sugar sits temptingly on the plate. The aroma, with the soothing scent
of vanilla beans, seems too scrumptious to resist. What powers must be summoned to withstand
such seduction? Most people are familiar with Stanford psychologist Walter Mischel’s 1960’s
marshmallow experiment in which preschoolers are seated in front of a single treat that may be
eaten right away or saved for later. The children are informed that if they save the treat, they will
be rewarded with a second marshmallow. As might be expected, less than a third of the
preschoolers who participated in this experiment had enough self-control to wait for the second
treat (Longhorne 17). The subjects of this experiment were forced to make a weighty decision.
Should they give in to their desire for immediate gratification or hold out for the often
underappreciated benefits of delayed gratification?
Fortunately for these youngsters, their anguish only lasted a mere fifteen minutes. The
kids of today, however, are not so lucky. Due to the temptations posed by technology in
classrooms, many students feel as though they are living through a perpetual marshmallow test
(Sparks 13). Like the subjects of Mischel’s experiment, today’s students must choose between
the immediate gratification offered by texts, Snapchat, and Facebook notifications and the
delayed gratification offered by their education. For the majority of students, the temptation to
check an alert is often too great to ignore. Improper use of mobile technology in the classroom
often deters teachers from incorporating such technology into their classrooms. It is time to face
that, because technology is such an integral part of our world, educators must take action to
prepare students for the changing face of employment by enabling proper use of mobile devices
through the teaching of self-control.
