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As he waited in the back of a classroom before making a presentation, communication studies Professor Tim Groeling observed students as they took notes for the class, listened to the lecturing professor and played computer solitaire.

As society’s dependence on technology grows, students have increasingly used laptop computers as note-taking devices.

And with wireless Internet access readily available in most campus areas, laptops are also bringing to the classroom the convenience of checking e-mail or watching a favorite band’s latest music video.

Robert Watson, an English professor, said that laptops can facilitate a more studious academic environment, but in reality they represent more of a negative influence.

“I think in concept, it’s useful for people to take notes, but from what I’ve seen, my impression is that in practice it is more of a distraction, with more people checking their e-mail or playing games than doing more relevant tasks,” Watson said.

According to Intel’s 2005 “Most Unwired College Campuses,” out of the top-ranked schools in the nation, 98 percent are covered by wireless Internet, which is a jump from 64 percent in 2004. Of the schools covered by wireless, 74 percent have 100-percent coverage on campus.

On the UCLA campus, wireless Internet is available in most classrooms and has recently been added to the residence halls as well.

Depending on the circumstances, some students do believe having a laptop in a classroom setting helps them better understand class material.

“Personally, if I’m too tired, I bring my laptop to record lecture. In this situation, it helps me more in academics than hurts me,” said first-year undeclared student Jeff Song as he attempted to stay awake while typing on his Apple PowerBook.

“The Internet can be a distraction at times, but I haven’t really taken too much advantage of it,” he said.

Song is one of the many students in an early-morning class trying to stay away from the blue “e” icon, which would take him to the Internet – the gateway to myriad distractions.

Greg Brownstein, a first-year pre-business economics student, begins the same class by browsing the Internet before the professors walk into the classroom.

Brownstein said he believes a laptop is particularly helpful for him in compiling and exchanging notes to better his understanding of a certain subject or in case he misses class.

But he also acknowledged that wireless access on his computer is a distraction, as he sometimes talks to his friends through instant messaging instead of focusing on his work.

“I sometimes see a lot of kids who surf the Internet without any sign of notes on their screen, but it also depends on what’s going on in class – whether the professor is lecturing about new material or old information,” Brownstein said.

Anne Gilliland, professor and chairwoman of the UCLA Department of Information Studies, said having wireless Internet in classrooms helps students effectively access classroom material, especially if the course material was posted online ahead of time.

“With posted lecture notes, the student isn’t so distracted with trying to write everything down. Students now have access and can pull up additional documents or electronic versions of papers that are relevant to what the professors are talking about in class,” Gilliland said.

A laptop may serve as more of a distraction in a seminar setting than in a big lecture hall, taking away from the discussion aspects of a small environment, Gilliland said.

Groeling, though he has observed students using their laptops for purposes other than learning, said he understands that typing is easier, which is a reason why he posts typed versions of his lectures online.

Regardless, it is up to the students to decide whether they would rather listen to the lecture or discuss what their friends did last Friday night.

“The final question (comes down to) what students choose to do with it and not give in to the temptation to use it for things that are unrelated or distract them from the class,” Groeling said.