Life goes by incredibly fast, and if an individual does not stop to look around, they may miss the little things. The problem is that some people in this world have the inability to stop and look around as something new seizes their immediate attention. The ability to pay attention for an extended period of time is something not every person can do, affecting how they live their life.
A person who can pay attention for a long period lives a contrasting life from someone who fails to keep their attention on intricate details. People whose focus is constantly changing notice more things in life, while people with larger attention spans view life with greater quality.
Junior Olivia Moisa struggles with ADHD, affecting her day-to-day activities for the majority of her life.
“My attention span has affected me in my daily life a lot recently,” Moisa said. “It’s hard to go to school some days and stay focused on classes when my ADHD takes over my mind and makes me think 20 different thoughts.”
Attention spans also have a tremendous impact on academic life and learning environments; education is something that requires an immense amount of focus over an extended period.
English teacher Mary Easton has noticed that in the past five to 10 years, students have begun to pay less attention in the classroom, believing that the reduction of long attention spans has affected the way one functions in a learning environment.
Easton has seen an accelerated decrease in attention spans in the classroom over the past couple of years, considering cell phones to be the cause. As technology has become more advanced, attention spans have started to regress. Easton has noticed that students have become much more reliant on their phones now and have the constant need to have their mobile devices right next to them.
According to an infographic made by WYZOWL, humans’ attention spans have on average reduced from 12 seconds to 8.25 seconds. With the decrease in attention spans, it has caused distraction rates to go up. In fact, the average person picks up their phone more than 1500 times a week.
With the advancement of technology, access to information has become much easier, and people can discover information much more promptly than ever before.
“I think that we want information so quickly, that if kids are bored with what you’re saying, or their attention span is shorter, then they tune out easier,” Easton said.
Longer attention spans make it so that people can stay focused on one thing for an extended period. Someone with a longer attention span experiences different days in comparison to the average person as well. Sophomore Sydney Vega has had a long attention span her whole life; ever since she could remember, in comparison to her classmates, Vega always felt as though she was a couple of steps ahead.
“[I notice] very minor things that usually don’t jump out at you, but that’s something that I observe right away,” Vega said.
While short attention spans may negatively affect life in some ways, Easton says that she rarely sees a difference between students with long attention final grades compared to those with shorter attention spans. One may not realize it, but attention dictates a human’s livelihood; whether someone can focus for long periods could change their life. Meaning, the lack of attention could deplete one’s quality of life.
