The Wall Street Journal (requires a subscription but the summary is at University Business) has an article that discusses the growing dissatisfaction that many professors apparently have over the proliferation of wireless Internet access available in college classrooms -- instead of promoting learning, many have found that letting students use the Internet during class only results in them messaging each other, surfing the web, and other non-academic activities:

Bringing laptops and wireless Internet access into classrooms was supposed to enrich classroom discussions by, for example, allowing students to import information from the INTERNET and share it with the rest of the class.

But instead some students are using their laptops to message friends, shop online, peruse websites, and pursue part-time jobs. The result: There is a rising backlash against classroom computer use from professors and schools.

Once again we see that technology is always a double-edged sword -- it can be used to good and for bad. It can be used to promote interactivity and instant access to information, or it can be used to distract and impede academic learning. Alas, that’s the nature of the technology beast.