COVID-19 Crisis Classrooms: Student Multitasking and Distractibility across Virtual and in-Person Learning Environments

We examined students’ attentiveness during in-person classes, synchronous online classes, and asynchronous video learning. Students multitasked more often and were more distractible in virtual than in-person environments. Those who tended to multitask and be distracted did so across all settings. Professor presence online did not discourage multitasking or reduce distractibility.