Classes at NIU are designed to spawn intellectually-stimulating conversation and an insatiable thirst for acquiring knowledge and critical thinking. In the midst of such typical atmospheres in the world of academia, pesky little vices reign free under the noses of instructors and professors alike.

A disenchanted, maybe even zombie-like look manages to creep onto each student’s face at least once during a 50-minute to two-hour-and-40-minute class period. Instead of focusing on a slide show of ancient art or a video of last year’s Unity in Diversity speeches, one is apt to turn to the sexy image of cell-block-like white walls, a wilting plant yearning for a speck of sunlight to peek through dreary window shades or a less-than-attractive plumber’s crack.

Such surly images may inspire one to doodle meaningless tidbits of art outside of the margins of notebook paper in the forms of eyeballs, flowers, hearts, stars and perhaps even an occasional reptilian-like creature.

What sets our generation of college students apart from previous generations is the fact that many of our classrooms carry state-of-the-art distractions that go beyond the margins of our notebooks.

Frustration can be sensed from professors who desperately search for signs of life among a sea of mice that frantically click away while students’ eyes periodically peer above their computer screens to make sure the professor doesn’t notice them doing research on the Internet for a paper that’s due that day. Instant messaging, e-mailing, the online version of “The Onion” and Slingo are among the many guilty pleasures the Internet offers students who are looking to escape the monotony of a lecture.

Two Massachusetts colleges, Bentley and Babson, which were among the first in the U.S. to make the Internet accessible in their classrooms, are spending thousands of dollars on software and hardware that will prevent students from abusing their computer privileges while class is in session, according to a Sept. 27 article on CNN.com.

Apparently, Bentley’s faculty was a little perturbed by the fact that its students were engaging in instant messaging, Net surfing and the occasional gander at saucy pornographic images in some of the intro classes. Bentley had the software installed during the last academic year, while Babson recently upgraded the one it had installed three years ago.

The software does not censor what can be seen on the Internet, but offers the professor the ability to choose whether the students can access the entire Internet, or just that particular school’s intranet, and can block instant messaging and e-mails.

Some classrooms in Bentley have the advantage of allowing teachers to view their students’ e-mails and instant messages and even the ability to display them on a screen in front of the classroom. (“Well, well, well. What do we have here? It looks like Billy’s having an in-depth conversation with BIGFOOL4U about how he bounced his chin off the concrete on his way into the night club only to have his fake ID rejected and confiscated at the door. Let’s all point and laugh at Billy.”)

While NIU’s only deterrent for students to steer clear of their keyboards are the professors’ malevolent looks that make their way across the room along with a few verbal warnings, one shouldn’t feel too bad about giving in to the IM gods once in a while. Such distractions aren’t too bad, in moderation. Employers are looking for college graduates who have mastered the art of multi-tasking.

However, professors are looking for students whose respirators aren’t attached to their computers’ hard drives. I would imagine that hearing the same three students spewing out answers and comments during every class period is just about as much fun for the professor as it is for the majority of students.

Daydreaming, along with a subtle nodding of the head, may be a more pleasant distraction to tend to instead of fervently searching for Menudo collectibles on E-Bay.