Teen kids clicking too fast on computer

[Southernmiss]

I was just helping DS who is a sophomore work on an application for a summer leadership opportunity on-line. It's his first application of this sort, so he needed me to watch over his shoulder.

He just clicks and rushes through stuff. Makes me nervous that he is missing something on the application. He says I can read fast and type fast. Granted, yes he does type fast. But still take your time on something important like this.

And then he clicks between facebook, texting, the school's website and the application.

Oldest DS did the same thing as we helped him begin to prepare apps of this sort.

Then youngest DS 13 moves to the family room and turns the tv to music stations and turns up the volume.

Arghh this generation has too much going on at once! Need a nerve pill now!

 

[Geoff_M]

When our daughter applied on-line at the university where she is now a Senior, she waited and waited and never heard anything back. A friend of ours, who is an alum of the school finally called on her behalf to found out what was going on... Turns out she blew past the question asking if she'd ever been convicted of any felonies!

 

[Southernmiss]

When our daughter applied on-line at the university where she is now a Senior, she waited and waited and never heard anything back. A friend of ours, who is an alum of the school finally called on her behalf to found out what was going on... Turns out she blew past the question asking if she'd ever been convicted of any felonies!

Oldest DS (now at college) realized last year that he did not go back and complete all of his essay for his common college application. Probably cost him a look from a few schools and me the application fees. They have to learn to slow down -- even if it's the hardway.

 

[Mickeyrella]

I was just helping DS who is a sophomore work on an application for a summer leadership opportunity on-line. It's his first application of this sort, so he needed me to watch over his shoulder.

He just clicks and rushes through stuff. Makes me nervous that he is missing something on the application. He says I can read fast and type fast. Granted, yes he does type fast. But still take your time on something important like this.

And then he clicks between facebook, texting, the school's website and the application.

Oldest DS did the same thing as we helped him begin to prepare apps of this sort.

Then youngest DS 13 moves to the family room and turns the tv to music stations and turns up the volume.

Arghh this generation has too much going on at once! Need a nerve pill now!

I am just like your son, but what can I say? I'm always multitasking, in fact... I can concentrate better when I'm doing two things at a time.

 

[disykat]

My 17 yr old just started college applications. First one, First line, name. He mispelled it as he was typing it in and it saved it and wouldn't let him edit. That took him down a notch! He was able to just start over, but I'm hoping it taught him a lesson!

 

[SandrA9810]

I read an article recently on Yahoo about college students who think they get more done multitasking than one thing at a time. The latter won...

I have a short attention span when it comes to doing that sort of thing, but I'll do something else for a few minutes then go back to it. I try to avoid flopping back and forth quickly.

 

[ladypage]

I think it depends on the person. I read incredibly fast, and my teachers never believed me. They'd make me turn a page back, or click the back button because they thought I was just skipping stuff. In all reality, when they made me do that it just forced me to focus on how long I "should" be on a page instead of what was actually on it.

The flipping between pages might just be their way of unwinding for a few seconds. When I'm reading a lot of technical/important stuff my brain gets tired and I need to take a breather every once in a while. It may only be 30 seconds, but checking my news feed on Facebook gives me the breather I need.

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Just want to say good luck to your ds!

As of right now my sophomore dd is planning on working this summer.

As far as the computer thing, my dd listens to MUSIC while working on her homework or skyping with people. She is always doing 2 things at once on the computer.

 

[Southernmiss]

Just want to say good luck to your ds!

As of right now my sophomore dd is planning on working this summer.

As far as the computer thing, my dd listens to MUSIC while working on her homework or skyping with people. She is always doing 2 things at once on the computer.

Thanks!

And in the mix of the activites providing the source of my vent about the 2 sons at home, the one at college called and gave me a quick data dump of what he's got going on the next week. Phew!

I felt like this and then this by the end of it all!

 

[Simba's Mom]

I'm so glad I'm not the only one with that frustration. As a tax preparer affiliated with a University, we've been called in several times to help students do their taxes on-line, then they fill out the FAFSA. I'm always frustrated with how many of them blow by things without reading. Then they invariably come back in when the IRS rejects their taxes because they "forgot" something like Marital Status or dependency.

 

[MichelleinMaine]

It's not just the younger folks. My stepdad had applied online for a job transfer (Navy security position- same job, just different base). He kept getting turned down.

Someone finally told him he'd checked "less than honorable discharge" as the reason he'd left the Air Force. Funny, they gave him a nice retirement ceremony and everything, seemed honorable to me. He was clicking too fast and wiped out his own honorable discharge.

 

[Southernmiss]

It's not just the younger folks. My stepdad had applied online for a job transfer (Navy security position- same job, just different base). He kept getting turned down.

Someone finally told him he'd checked "less than honorable discharge" as the reason he'd left the Air Force. Funny, they gave him a nice retirement ceremony and everything, seemed honorable to me. He was clicking too fast and wiped out his own honorable discharge.

Yikes.

 

[DebbieB]

I am a trainer for an insurance company and have noticed young new hires tend to go too fast and multi-task. I recently had 1 student who was attending an online class and I would explain an assignment to the class, he frequently came back and asked questions that I had already addressed. I had the feeling he was multi-tasking and not paying attention.

 

[harrismargaret9]

My 17 yr old just started college applications. First one, First line, name. He mispelled it as he was typing it in and it saved it and wouldn't let him edit. That took him down a notch! He was able to just start over, but I'm hoping it taught him a lesson!

Ahh wow! That’s rolling me down! Really the will learn it gradually with such experiences!

 

[klmall]

I am a trainer for an insurance company and have noticed young new hires tend to go too fast and multi-task. I recently had 1 student who was attending an online class and I would explain an assignment to the class, he frequently came back and asked questions that I had already addressed. I had the feeling he was multi-tasking and not paying attention.

So true where I work with young, temporary employees, many with college diplomas! They are truly used to just breezing through anything online and multi-tasking even when answering calls from our clients !

Our job requires that they read "updates" via email constantly through the day and I am forever saying "You were sent the answer to that this morning!" or "You were told where to find that data in my most recent email."

I have been very tempted to pull one of those old-fashioned "Directions" quizzes on them where you say read all the directions first before starting just to see how many will get caught doing something ridiculous because they didn't read every step first!