Pay attention? Not now.

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"Are you listening to me?"

"Sh. Do not disturb me. I'm in process of becoming a better learner. Where was I just now?"


Articles and researches across the printed as well as digital media have identified the virtues of daydreaming particularly in the area of:
self-awareness, creative incubation, improvisation and evaluation, memory consolidation, autobiographical planning, goal-driven thought, future planning, retrieval of deeply personal memories, reflective consideration of the meaning of events and experiences, simulating the perspective of another person, evaluating the implications of self and others' emotional reactions, moral reasoning and reflective compassion [and the list goes on and on and on].

Prior to the long list of virtues of daydreaming, scholars come up with a conclusion that daydreaming is cognitively good and healthy. 


The intriguing fact staggers me as I was brought up and taught in a culture where daydreaming, in classes particularly, is a big NO-NO and is believed to have no positive impact on one's cognitive ability. Accordingly, for long, I upheld the belief that the inability to be present and think about concerns unrelated to what one is doing (or daydreaming) is a cognitive waste of time and reveals one's lack of mental control and ability.

Hence, as a student, I tried my best to not daydreaming and, as a teacher, I cajoled my students not to daydream. Yet through Susanne Gargiulo, I discover that the decision of not allowing time to get one's mind away is limiting one's chances for making insights as the AHA moment does not come from a directed and particular focus on a task (this might also explain the reason why best ideas come from the loo as people do daydream a lot in the loo compared to elsewhere; the loof-aha moment).



Having insights into the virtues of daydreaming and having known that my previous belief is a fallacy are both surprising and interesting. After having daydream about daydreaming, many questions begin to creep in my head. Three of the most important are:
Should I scrap the belief that daydreaming is very disruptive especially in driving students to accomplish primary task?

Should I let my students to daydream in class just because I believe it is cognitively healthy for them? 

Should I encourage everyone in the class to be an absent-minded as a research says an absent-minded child might actually have sharper brains?

Should I? or Should I not?

Scholars reveal that daydreaming allows mind to wander and reflect things that are unresolved. By giving students freedom to daydream, they are able to have deep insights into their current situations, problems, personal growth and so on. Indeed, daydreaming is a rewarding activity yet, it is essential to bear in mind that the key element to effectively work with wandering mind (or daydreaming) is to keep unimportant clutter so your mind can wander to unresolved things that are important. 

That is the real challenge for our students. If teachers allow them to daydream in lessons, will their mind wander on important unresolved problems? or will their mind just wander on who should be their next lover in line and the texts that they should send to impress?

Sigh -_-"

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