Teachers, painfully aware of how distracted and disinterested their students have become, attempt to teach while kids wistfully gaze at the clock for the moment when they can freely check their text messages.
Aside from all the other things I think about this article, I would like to point out that a pet peeve of mine is when people use words incorrectly. The word “disinterested” does NOT (really, truly, purely) mean “uninterested.” Witness: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/disinterested
However, I realize in posting this that I am sounding like one of those snotty “purists” mentioned in the Dictionary.com listing. Here’s the thing: I’m generally supportive of evolutionary aspects of language, but it’s my honest belief that a good writer will not use a word with an ambiguous meaning, unless her intent is to be ambiguous. Context alone does not make one a clear communicator.
Rant over.