High levels of digital media use have become a feature of university lectures. While certainly capable of supporting learning outcomes, studies indicate that, when media use is off-task, it presents as a disruption, distracting both users and those around them from academic tasks. In this study an exploratory, mixed-methods assessment of a media use policy for a semester-long course is presented. This policy divided the lecture theatre into two sections, one for those who wished to use digital devices and one for those who did not. Such a policy empowered students to leverage the value of media, if desired, while affording those who wished not to use media, or be disrupted by their peers’ use of media, a degree of protection from distracting cues. Findings indicate that those who consistently selected the same side performed better than those who moved from side to side. Two post-course focus groups revealed that, while having some limitations, the policy was well received by the participants and heightened their awareness of the possible distractions of off-task media use, enabling them to identify and maintain a strategy for their in-lecture attentional allocation and behaviour.

中文翻译：

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管理演讲中的媒体使用：拆分类策略的可行性和价值

大量使用数字媒体已成为大学讲座的一项功能。尽管肯定有能力支持学习成果，但研究表明，当媒体使用处于非工作状态时，它会带来干扰，使用户和周围的人都无法进行学术任务。在这项研究中，提出了针对一个学期课程的媒体使用政策的探索性，混合方法评估。这项政策将演讲厅分为两个部分，一个是希望使用数字设备的人，另一个是不希望使用数字设备的人。这样的政策使学生能够在需要时利用媒体的价值，同时为那些不希望使用媒体或因同伴使用媒体而受到干扰的学生提供一定程度的保护，使其免受干扰。研究结果表明，始终选择同一边的人的表现要好于从一边走到另一边的人。课后两个焦点小组发现，尽管存在一些局限性，但该政策仍受到参与者的欢迎，并提高了他们对任务外媒体使用可能会分散注意力的意识，使他们能够确定并维持演讲策略注意分配和行为。