The impact of mind wandering on learning in children

The children then completed memory tests about the audio stories. It was revealed that they were frequently off-task (24-25%) when listening to an audio story. Additionally, when mind wandering is separated from other conceptually different types of inattention (e.g., thoughts about distractions, task-related interference), it was estimated to occur about 9% of the time.

Mind wandering significantly impacted how much children could remember about the audio stories. In the final study, the experimental paradigm was brought to the primary school environment and children listened to an audio story in class, periodically categorising their thoughts as on-task or off-task, and completing memory tests about the story. Children frequently reported being off-task (45%) when engaging in an educationally significant activity in the classroom.

More specifically, it was estimated that mind wandering occurred about 22% of the time and significantly impaired how much children could remember about the story immediately after listening to it. At present, the longer-term consequences of mind wandering are less clear. However, educators may need to consider strategies to reduce mind wandering in the classroom. <br><br><i>Thesis is embargoed until 31 July 2029</i>.