Who's Teaching the Kids? Cyberslacking in the Classroom

Abstract

The use of technology as a teaching tool at the university level is becoming increasingly popular. Graduate students aspiring to become educational leaders engage in weekly on-line discussions and assignment submissions through various platforms. These graduate students are also employed by school districts as classroom teachers. Over one semester, graduate students' electronic submissions of assignments in six courses were monitored to review the time of day during which students were submitting assignments. Results of the monitoring revealed that 51% of their assignments were submitted during the school day, thus creating an ethical dilemma for both the students and professors who are receiving the assignments. Who's managing their classrooms while teachers are submitting assignments on-line for their graduate courses?